The Dawn of Albion
by Peonywinx
Summary: Set immediately after Season 4. The Great Dragon announces that it is time for Merlin to reveal himself to Arthur in order to begin the time of Albion. However, considering that Camelot comes under attack again from a very familiar sorceress, both Arthur and Merlin have their hands full. Not to mention, Emrys is the only one who can save Camelot now. What's a warlock to do?
1. The Fog the Future Holds

**_A/N: Hello! Most of you who are reading this will probably not know me, since this is my first time writing for the Merlin fandom...but don't let that stop you! I've been toying with the idea of writing a Merlin fanfic for a while, and I finally got off my butt and decided to do it - and this is the result. _  
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**Disclaimer (this applies to the entire story): I am not the BBC; hence, I do not own Merlin or the characters or events thereof. All I own is the story plot, which I had a lot of fun with.  
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**_Now with that out of the way, let us begin..._**

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**The Fog the Future Holds**

"_Merlin!"_

The great call was a roar that pierced through the young warlock's sleep and intruded on his mind, yet it did not shatter the stillness of the night, because the sound reverberated only in Merlin's own head.

Merlin, for his part, bolted upright in his bed, blinking sleep hastily from his eyes.

"_Kilgharrah?" _he inquired hesitantly, reaching out with his Dragonlord powers over the distance that separated them. To his surprise, the Great Dragon was a mere three miles from Camelot.

"_I need to speak with you. Come to our usual place of meeting."_

"_Now?" _Merlin stared outside his small window.

"_Yes, Merlin, _now_," _Kilgharrah replied. _"It's an urgent matter."_

"_Can't you just tell me over the mind link?"_

In his head, Kilgharrah growled. _"This is not something to be discussed by shouting at each other over a distance of three miles, Merlin."_

"_We're not shouting." _Even as he said it, Merlin felt Kilgharrah's disapproval. _"We're shouting?"_

"_In a way, yes. Now get out of bed."_

"_Okay, okay." _Merlin hauled himself to his feet and began fumbling for his clothes, wondering how the dragon had ended up commanding the Dragonlord. As he did so, he recalled Kilgharrah's agitation as they'd spoken, and he wondered what could have upset the dragon so that it warranted him calling an impromptu visit in the middle of the night.

_It would have to be something big, _he mused as he pulled on his trousers. _Something serious and grave and…_ At this point, his brain finally caught up with his thoughts and he realised the significance of Kilgharrah's presence.

"Oh, no," Merlin muttered, hurriedly increasing his pace.

**MERLIN**

Kilgharrah was waiting when Merlin made his way into the clearing, torch held high.

"All right, I'm here; what is it?"

Not wasting words, Kilgharrah replied bluntly, "Aithusa has healed Morgana."

Merlin stared, a sinking feeling in his stomach. "What? Why would she do that?" He had hoped, guiltily, that Morgana would die from her injuries and thus never threaten Camelot again – and yet, he felt strangely relieved that she hadn't.

Merlin, even after all she had done, remained of two minds about Morgana. While most of the time he resigned himself to the fact that she was a ruthless enemy of Arthur and Camelot now, there were those rare moments when he would wistfully recall their easy friendship. He couldn't bring himself to truly hate her, since he had a sneaking suspicion that, had he not poisoned her – and thus turned her utterly against him – things might have been different.

"I thought you were keeping an eye on Aithusa," Merlin added, somewhat accusingly.

Kilgharrah bristled. "We dragons do not smother our young ones as you humans often do," he informed Merlin tartly. "A dragon hatchling is allowed its freedom to develop its own gifts and talents. I may be Aithusa's guardian, but I am not her keeper."

Merlin sighed. "So what do we do now?"

"Young warlock, I do not think you understand the significance of this act. For a white dragon to heal someone, it must see something worth saving."

"Any life is worth saving, even Morgana's." Merlin still held this conviction, even though he knew that if it all came down to it, if he absolutely had to, he would end Morgana's life with his own hand.

"No, Merlin," Kilgharrah disagreed. "I told you once that white dragons are rare. The reason this is so is because they possess a tremendous amount of power. This sets them somewhat apart from the rest of our race. But for all their power, they have limitations that the rest of us do not have."

"Limitations like?" Merlin queried.

"White dragons are inherently good," Kilgharrah told him. "They are instruments of destiny. For a white dragon to turn so completely from its intended purpose that it becomes evil, it would require an immense amount of black magic wielded by a Dragonlord."

"So…Aithusa's not going to betray us anytime soon – is that what you're saying?"

"Yes and no. She is a pawn of destiny, Merlin, just like you and I – and destiny works in strange ways sometimes. She cannot betray our cause itself, but in order for our cause to prevail, it may be necessary for her to betray _us_."

"You're not making sense," Merlin complained, frustrated and annoyed by Kilgharrah's ever-cryptic comments.

"Suffice to say, young warlock, that Morgana's destiny may not unfold as I once thought."

Merlin immediately jumped on this piece of information. "You mean she might not be my greatest foe after all?" Hope rose inside him, hope that Morgana might yet be saved.

"Of that I have no doubt." Kilgharrah's quick, firm answer was like a slap in the face; Merlin blinked. "However, I am no longer sure how she will fulfil that role."

"How _else _can she fulfil it?" Merlin demanded. "Isn't it obvious enough?"

"The prophecies are tricky, young warlock. The same passage can have several different interpretations. Something that seems clear at first may prove not to be." Seeing his Dragonlord's displeased frown, Kilgharrah summarised, "In short, Merlin, I may have been too hasty in encouraging Morgana's demise."

Merlin's frown disappeared, to be replaced by a look of utter bewilderment. "You've been telling me for years that I should let Morgana die."

"And yet, you never have," Kilgharrah pointed out. "And the one time you might have – albeit unintentionally – Aithusa healed her. This leads me to speculate that Morgana is important enough to the fate of Albion that destiny will not allow her to be killed."

Merlin exhaled, attempting to adjust to the change in his worldview. "This changes everything, doesn't it?"

"Indeed," the dragon agreed. "And I apologise for misleading you. As a creature of the Old Religion, I should have known better than to assume. I am reluctant to admit it, but perhaps I was too blinded by my feelings for Uther to even consider other possibilities."

"But Morgana never did anything to you."

"It was not what she had done, but rather what she would do – or what I thought she would do – that made me despise her."

That made Merlin pause. "What she _would_ do?" he asked cautiously. "You mean, taking over Camelot?"

Kilgharrah shook his scaly head. "Worse than that, young warlock." He seemed to hesitate before adding, "The prophecy states that she will kill you."

Merlin gasped. _"What?"_

"As I said before, Merlin, prophecies are tricky," Kilgharrah reminded him. "They do not always mean what we think they mean. I suggest you put it out of your mind for now, and leave the interpretation of prophecies to me. At the moment, it is the least of your worries."

"In what distorted universe is Morgana killing me the least of my worries?" Merlin demanded, in a somewhat strangled voice.

Kilgharrah's nostrils flared in warning. "In this one. Heed my advice, Merlin, and do not dwell on it. You have far bigger things to be concerned about than what Morgana might or might not do."

Merlin had not failed to catch the change in the dragon's tone. "Bigger things?" he said warily. "Like what?"

In response, Kilgharrah stretched out his neck and reared his head, his gold eyes burning with something indecipherable. At that moment, he looked more majestic than Merlin had ever seen him.

"The time of prophecy draws near, young warlock. The Once and Future King sits on the throne of Camelot, with his prophesied Queen by his side. The dawn of Albion is at hand. All that remains is for Arthur to be made aware that magic can and has been used for good."

Kilgharrah looked straight at Merlin, whose eyes were wide and unbelieving.

"Merlin, it is time for you to reveal yourself as the great warlock you truly are."

Merlin stood rooted to the spot, unable to move, or even think. All his breath left him in one big whoosh. When Kilgharrah spoke again, it was softer and more gentle, as if to reassure Merlin.

"It is time for Emrys to take his rightful place beside his king."

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_**A/N: As most of you can guess, this story picks up directly after Season 4. Oh, and I know that in canon Aithusa is presumed to be a male, but I like him - her - better as a female. If Aithusa is a girl, it brings hope that the dragons will return, eh? And I freely admit to making up some mythology about white dragons - it's my story, after all. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter, because I will be updating daily - thus, Chapter 2 will post tomorrow! And until then, of course, I would love to hear your comments!  
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	2. The Choices to be Made

**_A/N: Hi again, guys. I'm still reeling from the flood of FanFiction alert notifications I received, so thanks for that. Also thanks to my seven reviewers _**_Tagrea, LadyDunla, Lady Lyanna, Melgaye, Hiphuggers2, lilyflower1345,_**_ and _**_readernurse_**_. I loved all your comments!_**

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**The Choices to be Made**

The crisp, fresh air of the early morning nipped at Morgana's face as she traipsed through the trees, looking for firewood amongst the bracken and moss of the forest floor.

Since being healed by the white dragon almost a week ago, Morgana had had a lot of opportunity to think, and she had arrived at several conclusions.

One: dragons still existed. The one who had healed her looked small, young – so she could only assume that a dragon egg had survived Uther's purge. And she knew that the adult dragon that had killed Agravaine's men still lived, along with who knows how many other dragons in hiding.

Two: for the first time ever, she was truly alone, with no friend or ally she could call upon. Now that Agravaine and Helios were dead, there was no one she could rely on to help her. Morgana thought with sorrow of her sister Morgause, the only one who had ever truly understood her.

Three: someone in Camelot had magic; Morgana had sensed it the last time she was there. Whoever it was had to be a strong sorcerer, for the magic was powerful. (In the back of her mind, she knew it was Emrys.) That would explain why all her plots against Camelot had failed; the unknown magic-user had been using his power to fight her from the sidelines, protecting the city. Morgana wondered if Arthur knew how much he owed to something that supposedly did only evil.

_Of course he doesn't, _she thought maliciously to herself. _Arthur wouldn't tolerate a sorcerer in his city, if he knew. Just like his father. _Her mental tone was bitter, mocking. Our _father._

Morgana's fourth conclusion was the most surprising of all: she was tired. Tired of fighting, tired of revenge, tired of hating – tired of it all. Her plans never worked, anyway – and now she was alone.

What was really the point of it all, anyway? Arthur was firmly established as king and happily married to Gwen, with a hidden, powerful sorcerer protecting him and Camelot. What else, what more, could she do, with all that taken into account?

Morgana couldn't even identify when she'd first started feeling this way. When she first began her campaign against Camelot, she'd been working against Uther. Then she'd discovered she was the king's daughter, that she had a legitimate claim to the throne – and she had started conspiring against Arthur, too. She'd wanted the throne, wanted to be queen – and when she managed to accomplish that with her immortal army, it was more satisfying than she had ever imagined.

When it had all come crashing down on her, she'd vowed to get even, to retake what was hers. And after Morgause's death, her determination intensified; she would do it for her, for the sister who had helped her.

Then she'd met Agravaine, and heard the truth of Arthur's birth (somehow, Morgause had never got around to telling her that). And with the knowledge that Arthur should never even have been born in the first place, that Uther had blamed magic for his own grievous mistake, Morgana's anger reached new bounds. She'd promised herself that she would ride into Camelot once more and force the pretender off his throne. When Arthur became king, she'd sworn to do the same to him.

But now…what was she fighting for, really? Knowing what she did, she had to admit that with no allies, conquering Camelot was next to impossible – and to her immense surprise, she found that she didn't really want to do it anymore.

That startling realisation brought her to one, very important question: what should she do now?

**MERLIN**

Merlin blearily rolled out of bed for the second time in four hours. Not that he'd been able to sleep for those four hours – he'd been awake since his little midnight chat with Kilgharrah, mulling over the dragon's words, thinking about them every which way he could, analysing them half to death. Merlin half-hoped that there was some other meaning Kilgharrah meant to convey – that the message was not what it seemed to be. Kilgharrah had done it often enough in the past, after all.

But, after four hours of constant thinking, Merlin had to concede that the message was exactly what he knew it to be. There was no hidden meaning, no secondary interpretation.

For once, the Great Dragon had been perfectly clear.

**MERLIN**

"Are you all right, Merlin?"

Merlin looked up in surprise to find Arthur observing him intently, but trying not to be obvious about it.

Merlin smiled, pretending that he hadn't just been thinking about something serious, something totally not in keeping with his light-hearted grin. "I'm fine, Sire."

At this, Arthur's brow furrowed. "No, you're not."

Merlin feigned innocence. "What makes you think that?"

"Because, you haven't insulted me once today, you're doing your chores properly, and you've been calling me 'Sire' all day." Arthur's frown deepened. "People have been calling me 'Sire' and 'my Lord' and 'Your Majesty' all day, and I'm tired of it. I miss hearing my name. Usually, I can count on you for that." He looked pointedly at Merlin, who seized the opportunity to change the topic.

"Now why would you do that? You and I both know I call you a prat more often than I use your actual name."

Arthur's frown changed to a scowl of annoyance. "You do not!"

Merlin grinned, satisfied that his diversion was working. "Oh but I do, prat."

"Merlin, I'm the king!"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Merlin dipped into a mock bow. "My deepest apologies, King Prat."

"_Mer_lin!"

Merlin chuckled, his blue eyes lighting up with mirth. Arthur sighed.

"Well, I suppose your insulting me is more normal than the unusually quiet way you've been acting all day," he conceded. "Now, seriously, what's the matter?"

Merlin's grin slipped off his face. Apparently Arthur wasn't as obtuse as he thought. Merlin decided to try a different tactic.

"Somebody's observant today," he noted as he cleared Arthur's dinner dishes. "Usually his royal pratness is too much of a dollophead to notice that I don't, as a matter of fact, talk _all _the time."

"Actually, Merlin, you do," said Arthur, ignoring the double (triple?) insult Merlin had just paid him. "Except today, as Guinevere so aptly pointed out."

Inwardly, Merlin groaned. _Gwen. _Of course, she _would _mention something of the sort to Arthur – she was far too caring a soul to let it slip by unnoticed.

It wasn't just Gwen, either. Merlin had lost count of the number of people who had inquired after him today.

Gaius had noticed his ward's unusual silence at breakfast and asked about it; Merlin told him he was fine.

Gwaine's query came after Merlin failed to respond to a joke; again, Merlin had said he was fine.

Gwen had gently asked him if anything was wrong, but Merlin said there wasn't.

Elyan, likely at his sister's request, politely informed him that he was there if Merlin needed anyone to talk to.

And so on and so forth. Everyone from the knights down to the washer lady in the kitchens seemed to be suddenly showing a great amount of concern for him. Merlin figured it was just his luck that the one day he was feeling nervous and jumpy just happened to coincide with the citywide 'Worry About Merlin Day'.

"So – and I can't believe I'm about to say this," Arthur's voice continued, "– but I want you to go back to being your annoyingly cheery, unbelievably idiotic, incredibly clumsy, over-talkative self. Let's start with that absurdly goofy grin of yours, again," he suggested. "Then we can move on to the talking part – which we can begin with you telling me why you've been acting even girlier than usual today."

Merlin struggled internally with himself for a moment before deciding to trust destiny, and pray to God that he didn't get his head severed then and there.

"All right," he relented, "but you have to promise me that you'll reserve judgment until you hear me out. I'll answer all your questions, I swear – but this is not an easy thing to say, and I really need you to keep an open mind." He held his breath.

"Okay," Arthur agreed, curious now.

"Also…you might want to sit down."

"Why?"

"Please, just trust me." The words were ordinary, but Merlin's tone implied that he was asking for much more than for Arthur to sit down. The young king peered at his manservant for a minute before nodding. He lowered himself into his chair and gazed up at Merlin expectantly.

Merlin took a deep breath to steady his nerves – it was now or never. Then he opened his mouth and began, "Arthur, I'm –"

"Sire," Sir Leon interrupted as he entered without knocking – something he only did when it was a matter of urgency, "there's a young boy in the throne room who wishes to speak with you. He barged in a few minutes ago, looking absolutely terrified. He says he has to tell you something very important."

Arthur immediately rose from his seat, putting his duties as king before his concerns as a friend, despite his desire to hear what Merlin had to say.

"We'll talk later," he promised Merlin.

As he swept out of the room, Sir Leon on his heels, Merlin wasn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed.


	3. The Trials to Conquer

**_A/N: Hello again, everyone! Many, many thanks for the great response from you guys, and especially those seven special people who reviewed: _**_readernurse, Hiphuggers2, lilyflower1345, kurtblaine87, vballqueen17, ReadingRaven019,_**_ and _**_aly-queen_**_!  
_**

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**The Trials to Conquer**

Quin was a boy, no more than ten or eleven years old. He was, however, tall for his age, being possessed of a lean and lanky frame that reminded Arthur of Merlin. Quin, though, had not Merlin's cerulean blue eyes; his were instead dark and terrified, screaming silently of the horrors they had witnessed. The poor boy was trembling like a leaf, and could barely get three words out without stammering. Arthur immediately placed comforting hands on his shaking shoulders and gently guided him to a seat. An intimidating king was not what the lad needed right now.

"It's all right, Quin," he said soothingly, having learned the boy's name beforehand from Elyan. "You're safe now."

Quin, far from being comforted, shook his head vigorously. "N-no, Sire, I'm not. N-none of us are."

Arthur's stance tensed. "What is it, Quin?" he questioned. "What happened?"

Quin's eyes teared up. "She-she killed them all, Your Highness," he confided tremulously. "My-my entire village. It's all g-gone." A sob wracked the boy's thin body.

"Was she alone?" Arthur queried.

"Y-yes, Sire. I've never seen anything like it. She just…marched in…and…and destroyed…everything…"

"No one else escaped?"

At this Quin broke out in fresh sobs. "N-no. It's just – just m-me."

Arthur's heart went out to Quin, but there was still one question to be asked.

"Do you know who she was?"

"Y-yes, Sire. It was the La–the Lady Morgana."

The entire throne room seemed to freeze. Arthur's eyes hardened.

"Thank you, Quin," he said. "Your information is very valuable. Have you any family you can stay with in Camelot?"

Quin sniffed. "My uncle lives in the Lower Town, Your Highness."

Arthur turned his gaze to Percival. "Make sure he finds his uncle."

Percival nodded and moved towards Quin. The boy stood up and began to follow the big knight, but then he stopped as he remembered something.

"Sire," he said, his voice small. "Lady Morgana – she said I was to give you a message."

The air grew, if possible, even colder and tenser.

"Go on," Arthur said.

Quin was fidgety, his eyes downcast as he said, "She said that she is coming for Camelot. She swears to take your throne, Sire. And she says…she says…"

"She says what?" Arthur prompted.

Quin finally lifted his eyes to meet the king's.

"She says that Albion will never be."

**MERLIN**

By the time Arthur returned to his chambers, it was nearly ten o' clock. He'd posted extra sentries on duty, arranged for a scouting party to travel to Quin's village, and spent over an hour in council with his 'Round Table' – but he had finally sent everyone to bed after conceding that there was really nothing more they could do tonight.

"Wake me up an hour before dawn tomorrow, Merlin," he ordered his manservant. Merlin had, of course, heard all about Quin's report, as he was a member, however unofficial, of the Round Table, and had thus been present at the meeting.

"Yes, Sire." Merlin turned to leave, to retire for the night – tomorrow was going to be a busy day – but Arthur called him back.

"Merlin."

Merlin cringed as he paused mid-step, wondering if Arthur intended to continue their conversation from earlier.

"Yes?" Merlin responded, inwardly bracing himself.

"You're calling me 'Sire' again. Stop it."

Despite himself, Merlin grinned. "Whatever you say, clotpole."

"And get some sleep. You look ready to drop."

"I will." Merlin _was _tired – but it was a result of nerves, not exhaustion. Without further ado, he slipped out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Arthur frowned as he watched him go. He heartily wished he could have finished his conversation with Merlin, but considering they had to prepare for a threat from Morgana (again), it hardly seemed the time.

"You're right, Gwen – something's up with Merlin."

Arthur's new wife sighed as she came out of the bathroom that adjoined their chambers. As King and Queen of Camelot, they each had their own personal quarters as well as a common room to share for their nights 'together' – all connected by a series of internal doors and hallways and separated from the rest of the castle by walls.

"I'm worried about him, Arthur," Gwen admitted.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Arthur assured her. No need to mention that _he _was worried too.

Gwen didn't look convinced. "Are you sure?" she pressed. "This looks like it's something big."

"He's Merlin. Of course I'm sure. The idiot seems to have the most unbelievable luck on the planet." Arthur moved to embrace his wife. "So stop worrying, all right? Believe me, I'm worrying enough for the both of us. I can't believe Morgana's a threat again so soon. It's barely been a week! Camelot's still in the process of recovering from her last attack."

Gwen sighed again at the mention of her former mistress and sat down on the double bed. "Something has to be done about her, Arthur. Otherwise she'll just keep coming back."

"We have to bloody catch her first, don't we? Every time we defeat her she disappears before we can get to her." Arthur started pacing, his frustrated steps beating into the carpeted floor.

"You'll catch her, Arthur." Gwen's voice bespoke quiet confidence. "I know you will." She patted the spot beside her on the bed. "Come to bed, Arthur. You need your rest."

Arthur obligingly sat beside her. His gentle queen smiled at him before their lips met in a kiss.

**MERLIN**

Merlin went back to Gaius' quarters, not to sleep, but to prepare to leave.

"I have to go, Gaius," he explained as he packed a small bag of supplies. "Morgana's been threatening Arthur and Camelot long enough. She has to be stopped before she destroys everything we've worked for."

"You can't just leave," Gaius protested. "Arthur needs you here."

"Arthur will manage fine without me for a few days."

"Merlin, just because he's king now doesn't make him invincible. It's your job to protect him and to make sure he doesn't get himself killed."

"I _am _protecting him."

"By taking off on your own when he needs you most?" Gaius challenged.

"If Morgana makes it to Camelot, she'll destroy it," Merlin pointed out. "Her magic's grown more powerful; Arthur won't stand a chance."

"Not if you abandon him, he won't."

Merlin looked pained. "I'm not abandoning him. I can't tell him about my magic _now, _of all times, Gaius – he's got enough on his plate already. He doesn't need to deal with this on top of everything else." He paused just in front of the door. "The only option is for me to find Morgana and deal with her before she reaches Camelot."

"By yourself?" Gaius sounded horrified. "Merlin, that's suicide!"

Merlin shrugged, feigning a nonchalance he did not feel. "How hard can it be? I'm Emrys, remember? – and Emrys has a large role in the future of Albion. I'll be fine."

"And how do you expect to find Morgana? You don't even know where to look!"

"I'll start with the druid camps. She may have sought refuge with them after her last attack."

"And if she's not there?"

"I'll keep looking. I'll find her before she reaches Camelot, Gaius. Albion's fate – and Arthur's – depends on it."

Gaius sighed heavily, knowing nothing he could say would dissuade Merlin.

"How am I to explain your absence to Arthur?" he questioned.

Merlin hesitated. "You don't have to," he replied. "I'll leave him a note. I hope he understands."

"I hope so too." Gaius walked over and hugged Merlin tightly. "Be careful, Merlin. Please."

Merlin's eyes were solemn. "I will," he promised. On impulse, he added, "I'll be back, Gaius."

With that promise, he was out the door and out of sight. Come morning, King Arthur's manservant would be far from Camelot, and there would not be a sign of him for miles in either direction.


	4. The Things One Doesn't Expect

**_A/N: Thanks to those who favorited and/or subscribed, and thanks to_**_readernurse, kurtblaine87, chawk1993, Neonlights, Lady Willamina, **and **vballqueen17 **for reviewing! There will be anothe**__**r author's note at the bottom to clarify a few things, but until then, enjoy chapter four!**_

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**The Things One Doesn't Expect**

Morgana knew she was tempting fate by coming to a druid camp after everything she had done – but she had nowhere else to go. She did not wish to return to her lonely existence in her hut in the forest. The druids were, for the most part, a peaceful people – they were the most likely to help her.

That was how Morgana Pendragon came to stand in front of Iseldir the druid chieftain.

Morgana had only met Iseldir once, but from what she remembered of him, he was a kindly man, fair and just. The years had not changed the druid. Iseldir's eyes were still piercing, and his face bore no extra lines. His manner, however, was considerably more guarded than before.

"Morgana Pendragon," Iseldir greeted, his voice neutral.

Morgana dropped her head. "Iseldir."

"My people tell me you seek shelter with us."

Morgana nodded, eyes downcast. "Only if you are so kind as to see fit to provide it, my lord."

Iseldir raised one thin eyebrow. "Courtesy, Morgana? This is not a demand, then?"

"No, my lord. It is a request – but I fully understand if you choose not to grant it."

"I see." Iseldir studied the woman before him. "Tell me, Morgana – why should I help the sorceress who has done more than anyone else to usurp the throne of the Once and Future King and destroy Albion?"

At this, Morgana looked up, confused. "I…I don't understand, my lord," she confessed.

Iseldir's searching gaze stared into her, making her uncomfortable. "No, you don't," he acknowledged. "But perhaps it's time you did."

**MERLIN**

As he had instructed, Arthur was woken up exactly an hour before dawn. However, when he opened his eyes, it was not to find his idiot manservant vigorously shaking him awake, but another who had already taken Merlin's place once before.

"George?" Arthur blinked, staring at the prim and proper servant incredulously.

"Good morning, Sire." George moved to get a tray from the table. "I have your breakfast all ready for you, Your Highness. Your clothes are laid out, your sword is sharpened, your armour polished – and after you breakfast, I will take your clothes down to be laundered."

Arthur was getting more and more confused. Aside from the fact that George was just as boring as ever, he had absolutely no idea what the man was doing in his chambers, or – more importantly – why Merlin was not.

"Where's Merlin?" he asked, as George neatly smoothed a napkin on his chest.

"He's left, Sire. He said he had something urgent to attend to, and asked me to take over his duties while he was gone."

Arthur frowned; he'd thought that George, no matter how dull he was, was not an idiot like Merlin – but clearly, he was wrong, because right now, George was making even less sense than Merlin usually did.

"He _left_?" Arthur repeated in disbelief.

"Yes, Sire." If George thought the king was being extraordinarily slow-witted this morning, he didn't say anything about it – a feat that would have been impossible for Merlin. "He left this for you." He handed Arthur a folded piece of paper.

The king, completely ignoring the plate of meat and cheese that George was placing in front of him, grabbed the paper and unfolded it to find Merlin's surprisingly neat handwriting penned on it.

_Arthur,_

_ I know you don't like George, but you can't deny that he's a better servant than I could ever hope to be. He'll take care of you while I'm gone. And before you get any stupid ideas into your head, you won't be able to find me, so don't even try._

_ I'm sorry I have to leave now, of all times – but please believe me when I say I have a good reason for it. I can't tell you exactly why, but it's not for myself. Trust me on that._

_ I'll see you when I get back. Till then, good luck, and don't be a prat._

_Merlin_

Arthur read the note through carefully – twice – but he still couldn't understand it. What in the world was that moron thinking? How dare he leave without even notifying his king?

George's bland voice interrupted Arthur's outraged, confused thoughts.

"Sire? Aren't you going to eat?" The servant didn't even sound particularly interested.

In a flash, Arthur made up his mind. "No," he replied curtly as he threw the covers off and swung his legs down to the floor.

**MERLIN**

Arthur wasn't the only one who got up early that morning. Sir Gwaine also rose before dawn – around the same time as Arthur, truth be told. However, unlike Arthur, Gwaine did not have to deal with a pesky manservant, nor was his schedule quite so packed.

So, the knight found himself, quite by accident, to have a bit of free time before he was expected at the training grounds – and as it was too early to nip into the tavern for a drink, even for him, he decided to go visit Merlin. He hadn't had a chance to talk to the younger man for a while.

Humming tunelessly, Gwaine dressed quickly and made his way to Gaius' chambers.

A surprise awaited him just outside Gaius' door.

"Arthur!" Gwaine greeted jovially. "Good morning, princess. Did you come to wake up Merlin?" While his words were light and joking, the knight noticed that Arthur looked exceptionally ticked this morning, and wondered as to the reason why.

"I would," the king replied in a controlled voice, "if he were here to be woken up."

Gwaine was confused. "Wha –" he began as Arthur pushed open the door to Gaius' chambers.

The physician was bending over a book of herb lore, but straightened immediately upon seeing his king enter the room, followed by Gwaine.

"Ah, good morning, Sire," he said respectfully; Arthur barely heard him.

"Where's Merlin?" he demanded, while Gwaine looked around in puzzlement.

"I don't know, Sire," Gaius answered truthfully – he _didn't _know where Merlin was.

"Gaius." Arthur's tone was full of implied meanings.

"I really have no idea, Sire," Gaius repeated. Then he frowned. "Didn't he write you a note?"

"Yes," Arthur admitted. He held up the paper clutched in his hand. Gwaine, without a care for manners, snatched it away and started reading. "But I'm hoping you have a better explanation for his sudden disappearance."

"As am I." Gwaine had finished reading and was now staring hard at Gaius, his face full of incredulity.

Gaius sighed. "I wish I did," he said apologetically, "but sadly, I do not."

Arthur still looked sceptical. "Merlin didn't say anything to you about where he was going or why?"

Gaius shrugged. "He did make a mention of several places he might be headed, but nothing specific. As for why he left, I'm sure he had a good reason."

Arthur huffed, unwilling to accept this, but understanding that it was all he was going to get. Gwaine, however, was not yet ready to drop the subject.

"And he went _alone_?" the knight inquired disbelievingly. Arthur's head snapped back to Gaius at this new thought – Merlin, traveling alone, with apparently no particular destination. He shuddered to think of the trouble his manservant could get into.

Gaius looked somewhat wry. "Merlin _can _take care of himself, you know."

Arthur snorted, quelling his worry. "Merlin? Take care of himself? He can't even make it halfway up the stairs without tripping."

"And would that be while he is or isn't carrying your armour?" Gwaine asked cheekily.

"Both." Arthur turned back to Gaius. "You'll inform me the moment he gets back?"

"Assuredly, Sire."

Arthur exhaled, knowing he could do nothing more, and left.

**MERLIN**

Morgana reeled back in shock and surprise at what she had just learned.

"Do you see now, Morgana?" Iseldir asked. He stepped forward and retrieved the seeing crystal from her numb hands. "Do you see what you've been fighting against?"

Morgana stared unseeingly, stunned to her core. "This…that's impossible," she said shakily. "Arthur is Uther's son. He can't be…"

"The Once and Future King?" Iseldir finished.

"It's impossible," Morgana reiterated.

"You are a Seer, Morgana," Iseldir told her. "Whatever you see comes true, because it _is _true – and there is nothing you can do to change your visions. You can try everything in your significant power to stop it – but at best, you will only delay the inevitable. The Queen of Camelot is living proof of that.

"Destiny will not be thwarted, Morgana. Arthur _is _the Once and Future King, destined to bring magic back to the land. By fighting him you have been hurting your own cause."

"The Once and Future King would have to be protected by Emrys," Morgana said, recalling what she had seen in the crystal.

"Indeed," Iseldir agreed gravely.

"Emrys has been fighting me at every turn, but…I have never seen him near Arthur. Why would he do so much for someone who does not even know who he is and who would have him persecuted for his magic?"

"Have you forgotten so soon, Morgana? Arthur is not his father. Emrys knows that, and he does his duty gladly, awaiting the day when magic is destined to return."

Morgana drew quick, emotional breaths. "Why have I never seen this before?"

"You were blinded by your rage and hate, and you were influenced by those who care not for these things and are concerned only for their own selfish agendas."

"Annis was right." It was a bitter pill for Morgana to swallow. "I sought to rid the land of an unjust reign, but in doing so I became the very thing I hated: a tyrant." She closed her eyes, feeling like she was drowning in an ocean of remorse. "I am truly Uther's daughter."

And with that, Morgana Pendragon broke down and cried for what she had done, and what she had become.

* * *

_**A/N: The above scene is my take on a possible redemption for Morgana. I still think the show may include such a storyline for her - even in Season 4, you can see there are moments where hints of the old Morgana show through the evil witch she has become. I'm not certain how well I did with Morgana's redemption here...I can't decide if it's in character or not - but there you go. **_


	5. The Third Fall of Camelot

**_A/N: Hello again! I've noticed that this story has gotten a LOT of favorites and alerts, but that the number of reviewers is disproportionately low. You know what that means, right? It means those few people who took the time to review - people like_**_Galaya, lilyflower1345, jacqs, ruby890, **and **Minch **- deserve showers and showers of e**__**lectronic cookies! :)**_**  
**

_**As for this chapter, it takes the story forward in a very tangible way. Let's read, shall we?**_

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**The Third Fall of Camelot**

For the next ten days, Arthur prepared his knights and his city for battle, though he was not entirely sure how much they could do. If Morgana was bold enough to tell him she was coming, her magic must have grown to such an extent that she feared nothing from Camelot's might. The prospect was a bleak one – add that to the fact that Arthur worried constantly about Merlin, even if he would never admit it – and it made for a rather grim king.

And the waiting! The waiting was agonising. It was worse than everything else combined. Quin's village (which the scouting party had reported utterly demolished, with bodies of the dead strewn everywhere) was a mere two days' ride from Camelot – Morgana had had plenty of time to attack, and yet there wasn't a sign of her.

"I don't like this, Guinevere," Arthur confided to his queen one evening. "Morgana should have been here already. Where the devil is she?"

Gwen sighed. "Maybe she's gathering an army," she suggested.

"With whose men?" Arthur inquired. "Cenred, Agravaine, Helios – all her allies – they're all dead."

"She's Morgana. She probably has a new ally. And she's no fool. She may have destroyed an entire village single-handedly, but Camelot is a different matter altogether. We have the finest knights in all the land…" Gwen turned his face to her. "…and we have you."

Arthur was about to reply to that when he was interrupted by a a shout from below the parapet they were standing on; he looked down to see Sir Leon staring up at him.

"It's Morgana, Sire!" Leon informed him, as the warning bell began to clang deafeningly. "She's here!"

Arthur's shock lasted only a second – then instinct and training took over. "Assemble the army!" he ordered. He turned to Gwen. "Gwen, stay in the palace."

"No," she refused. "I'm a blacksmith's daughter, Arthur – I can handle a sword."

Arthur would have protested further, but he recognised the look of determination in her eyes, and felt both pride and worry swell within him.

"All right," he acquiesced. "But be careful."

"You too," Gwen responded.

They parted ways, each ready to defend Camelot as the city's king and queen.

**MERLIN**

Three hours later, night had fallen over Camelot, but the city was far from dark; rather, it was ablaze with dozens of fires everywhere. The eastern part of the city was completely in ruins, and the remainder was in disarray. And still there was no sign of Morgana – merely the horrific creatures of magic that comprised her new army. Arthur recognised a few – there was a pure Bastet, at least three trolls, several Sidhe, a goblin or two, a Lamia in full monster form, and a whole platoon of poisonous serkets – but the majority were of such ancientness, such evil, that he had not seen them before today.

"Arthur!" Percival called from across the courtyard. "We can't keep doing this! We won't hold out much longer!" He tried and failed to plunge his sword into a black, slimy creature with several tentacles.

Arthur nodded tersely as he fought off one of the few humans in Morgana's demonic army. "Get everyone into the palace to regroup!" he directed.

Percival dodged his opponent, ran to Elyan and Gwaine, and together the three of them started herding the petrified citizens of Camelot into the relative safety of the castle walls. The other knights quickly caught on and helped. Soon enough, practically the entire city had taken shelter in the palace. Arthur was the last to go in, and he immediately barricaded the door.

"Has anyone seen Guinevere?" he asked in concern.

"I'm here, Arthur."

Arthur exhaled in relief at the sight of his wife and gave her a quick embrace. Then he turned to his men.

"Leon, Gwaine, Percival – start organising the people," he instructed. "We need to evacuate. We're safe in here for now, but it won't be long before Morgana –"

A loud explosion interrupted him. The common people screamed as Morgana burst in, blowing the heavy double doors off their hinges with barely a flick of her wrist.

Except…it didn't look like Morgana.

The similarities were astounding, though. The sorceress' hair was black as a raven's wing and cascaded down her back and around her shoulders in waves. Her creamy skin was the same pale ivory of Morgana's, and her facial features were precisely the same that graced the estranged Pendragon.

There was no denying that the sorceress looked almost exactly like Morgana, and nearly everyone would certainly recognise her as such. But to those who had known Morgana well, there was something off about this woman – tiny, almost unnoticeable differences. It was in the way her eyes bespoke cold steel, the way her rosebud mouth curved in a chilling smirk, and the way she moved with a languidness Morgana had never possessed.

There was a deathly silence in the hall as the dust from the explosion cleared. Nobody dared move as the woman's eyes roved around.

Then Arthur stepped forward, Excalibur (for that was what he had named the sword he had pulled from the rock) pointed in front of him. Gwen followed his steps, staying slightly behind and to the side of him. Morgana's look-alike snapped her gaze to them, and her lips quirked in a frighteningly malicious parody of a smile.

"Well, well," she said in Morgana's voice. "The bold King Arthur and his courageous Queen Guinevere. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She inclined her head in mock greeting.

"You're not Morgana," said Arthur.

The sorceress smiled again. "How very astute of you."

"Who are you?" Arthur demanded.

"I am not Morgana, and yet, I am. I am what she should have been, what she would have been had she continued on her path of hate and destruction." She twisted her mouth into a smirk that even Morgana could not match. "I am Morgan le Fay."

A stunned silence met her announcement, but Morgan le Fay was not affected in the least by it. But then she sighed.

"If I'd known Emrys was going to flee the city, I wouldn't have wasted so much time gathering my army," she mused. "You would think, with all his power – and his destiny to boot – that he wouldn't leave Camelot to my mercy…" She shrugged. "Oh, well. It doesn't matter now, does it? The important thing is that with Emrys gone, you've lost your only defence against me. Camelot and Albion will fall, and you, Arthur Pendragon, the Once and Future King, will die."

**MERLIN**

The following day saw Morgan le Fay on the throne of Camelot, queen of a city with only half its population intact. The other half were either dead, or had fled to the woods. This last group included the king and queen, the royal physician, and all four Knights of the Round Table. And all of them, weary from the night's battle though they were, were holding a very serious discussion apart from the rest of the refugees.

"This," Arthur said moodily, "is getting to be a habit. And I don't like it, at all."

"Morgan le Fay is more powerful than Morgana ever was," Gwen added.

"Who's Emrys?" Elyan asked suddenly. Everyone turned to look at him.

"Good question," Gwaine concurred. "From the way Morgan spoke of him, it sounds like he's the only one who can defeat her."

"Well, he's obviously a sorcerer," Leon put in. "How do we know we can even trust him?"

"We may not have a choice," Percival pointed out.

Arthur exhaled, thinking deeply. "Gaius, what do you know of this Emrys?"

All heads swivelled to the physician. Gaius shifted and pursed his lips, wondering what to say.

"Emrys is what the druids call him," he said finally. "But he has many names. He is the most powerful warlock this land has ever known."

"Do you know where we can find him?" Arthur asked intently.

"Sire!" Leon objected. "Surely you don't intend to ask a sorcerer for help?"

"I don't like it either, Leon, but Percival's right – we don't have a choice. Emrys is our only hope against Morgan le Fay, and I will not let Camelot fall to her simply because we were too scared or too prejudiced to ask him for help."

"I know Emrys," Gaius interjected, drawing everyone's attention to him again. "He is not like other sorcerers. He wishes no ill on Camelot. Arthur…" Gaius turned to the king. "Emrys has made it his life's work to protect you and the future you are destined to create."

"You sound just like Merlin," Arthur grumbled. "He talks a lot about destiny too."

Gaius smiled slightly.

"So where can we find Emrys?" Gwen inquired.

"Until recently," Gaius answered, "Emrys has been living in Camelot."

"Impossible," Leon said. "We would have known if a sorcerer was living in the city."

"Emrys is very careful," Gaius disagreed. "He is a master of hiding in plain sight."

"All right," said Arthur. "So why did he leave? Where is he now?"

"I'm not exactly sure, Sire," Gaius admitted. "But the druids may know where he is; if we're lucky, he may even be with them."

"There is a druid camp not far from here," Elyan spoke up. "I spent some time with them after I left Camelot."

Gwen stared at him. "You never told me about this," she said.

"There was no reason to," her brother replied.

"Well, there's no time to waste." Arthur stood up. "Elyan, Gwaine, and I will leave immediately for this druid camp. We have to find Emrys."

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_**A/N: It's always Emrys, isn't it? Emrys this, Emrys that, Emrys will save us all, Emrys is your doom - sometimes I wonder why poor Merlin doesn't have a nervous breakdown.  
**_

_**Morgan le Fay's existence might be a little far-fetched and confusing right about now, but as the story develops, you will learn more about her and who and what she really is. Ta!  
**_


	6. The Path to Forgiveness

**_A/N: Blink. Blink. Close mouth. Deep breath..._  
**

**_THANK YOU ALL SO, SO MUCH! I honestly can't believe it - SIXTEEN reviews on ONE chapter in ONE day! I'm speechless and awed and so totally grateful to all of you that if I keep talking, I'm going to make a fool of myself :P So, thank you again to you awesome people:_**_ Neonlights, chawk1993, StarBolt1966, sweety2010, Melgaye, merlinismylife, lilyflower1345, Janaus, rmatri540, Alaia Skyhawk, xXxDaughteroftheKingxXx, desertprince, Kool Kato, CarolinaEirasSa, Minch,_**_ and _**_KaitlenPotter_**_. You all rock!_**

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**The Path to Forgiveness**

Merlin wandered cautiously into the druid camp, recognising it at once as the residence of Iseldir's tribe. For the past two weeks, Merlin had been roaming the forest, stopping by the few druid camps he encountered – but none of them had heard anything about Morgana. Merlin was considering giving up and going back to Camelot, where he could protect Arthur – for all he knew Morgana was already at the gates. The thought made his blood run cold.

_That's it, _Merlin decided. _If Iseldir can't tell me anything about Morgana's whereabouts, I'm going back to Camelot. Who knows what trouble Arthur could have got into by now._

And there it was: that irrational fear that Arthur wouldn't survive for long without Merlin at his side. Merlin knew it was a little ridiculous – Arthur had fared fine before he came along, and was not without skill of his own – indeed, he was the best knight in Camelot, and renowned as a great warrior in all the five kingdoms.

But in Merlin's defence, a great number of magical creatures and bloodthirsty sorcerers out for revenge did seem to make it a habit to target Arthur – and Arthur himself had an irritating tendency to be far too noble and self-sacrificing for his own good.

It didn't occur to Merlin that Arthur, were he to think along the same lines, would come to the exact same conclusions about Merlin.

**MERLIN**

Morgana sighed as she brushed her long dark hair in the small tent Iseldir had been kind enough to let her stay in. It was smaller than her old hut, but much cosier, and in it, Morgana felt a peace she hadn't experienced in a long time.

In the week since she had started staying with the druids, Morgana had been constantly thinking. Her thoughts never left her alone, even as she revelled in the slow pace of the camp, wondering where she would go from here.

Obviously, she couldn't return to Camelot; but perhaps she would send Arthur a letter – tell him she no longer bore him any ill will. He probably wouldn't believe her, but she meant it. She would most likely remain with the druids – after all, they had graciously accepted her, despite all she had done – and would never see her half-brother again – which was exactly as it should be – but she would like to at least apologise for her actions.

For the first time in well over three years, Morgana felt at peace with herself.

Then that hard-won peace was shattered by a commotion outside her tent. Morgana peeked out to see what was going on.

"What's happening?" she inquired of a young druid girl nearby.

The girl's eyes were wide and awestruck, but they were shining radiantly, and a big smile brightened her otherwise plain features.

"Rejoice, Lady Morgana," she said, almost reverently, "for it is a wonderfully blessed day. Emrys has come."

And just like that, Morgana's newfound sense of calm and contentment vanished. She stumbled back into her tent, eyes wide not with wonder, but fear. _Emrys. Here?_

Morgana resolved to remain in her tent until the warlock had left. She couldn't face Emrys. Not here, not now – not ever.

**MERLIN**

"Emrys." Iseldir's greeting was warm and welcoming. "We bid you welcome."

"Thank you, Iseldir." Merlin inclined his head. "I wish I could talk more with you, but I'm here on a matter of importance."

"Of course," Iseldir agreed. "What do you seek?"

"I was wondering if, perhaps, you knew where Morgana Pendragon is."

If Iseldir was surprised, he didn't show it. "As a matter of fact, I do. She came to us some days ago, seeking refuge. She currently resides in the western part of our encampment."

Merlin's pulse quickened. "I need to speak with her."

"Of course. I will take you there myself." Iseldir took a step out of his tent; Merlin trailed him, asking questions.

"Has Morgana been here all along?"

"Yes."

"Do you know what she's planning to do next?" Merlin didn't say what was actually on his mind: _What evils does she intend for Arthur and Camelot now? _

Iseldir, however, seemed to know his thoughts even without him voicing them. "She plots nothing, Emrys."

Merlin frowned in puzzlement. "Really? Nothing?"

Iseldir smiled knowingly. "Nothing," he affirmed. "The Lady Morgana, I am pleased to say, has repented of her evil ways."

Merlin stopped in his tracks, the shock evident on his face. "She…what?" he managed with difficulty.

Iseldir nodded solemnly, his pace unwavering. Merlin recovered his wits and hurried to catch up.

"But…how? Why?"

Iseldir shrugged. "She has seen the prophecies. She knows of Arthur's destiny as the Once and Future King, and she knows of Emrys' part in the future to come. But in truth," he confessed, "I know not what caused her to change. Nevertheless, she has, and I am glad. She seeks to begin anew with us."

"But…" Merlin was struggling to comprehend this. "If Morgana's turned over a new leaf, then…who's threatening Camelot now?"

Iseldir sighed heavily. "I cannot be certain, but I believe she is the last foe to be defeated before Albion comes to be."

"Who is she?" Merlin questioned.

"I'm not entirely sure," Iseldir admitted. "I will attempt to divine the truth, but I cannot guarantee anything." He pointed to a small grey tent in the midst of several others about five yards away. "Morgana is in there."

Merlin took one look, straightened, and walked purposefully forward.

**MERLIN**

Morgana jumped when her tent flap was lifted, then stared as Merlin came through the opening.

"Merlin?" she said disbelievingly – and a little nervously.

"Hello, Morgana."

They stood, carefully keeping a fair distance between them, each studying the other, each extremely aware of the barrier between them. All their past history, their actions against each other – Merlin poisoning Morgana, Morgana threatening him, Merlin fighting against Morgause, Morgana conquering Camelot, Morgana forcing Merlin's hand against Arthur – played across their minds like some troubled vision. And they both waited, wondering if they could possibly overlook all that long enough to have a civil, sincere, _truthful _conversation that would be the first step to reconciliation.

Morgana broke the awkward and overbearing silence first. "What are you doing here?" she asked quietly, diligently avoiding Merlin's gaze.

"Believe it or not, looking for you."

Morgana's head snapped up to peer at him. "Looking for me?" she repeated suspiciously. "Why?"

Merlin explained, in succinct terms, what Quin had reported.

There was another pause.

"It wasn't me," Morgana said softly. "You have no reason to believe me, I know – but I swear I didn't do it."

Another short beat of quiet. Then:

"I believe you."

Morgana stared at him, astonished. "You do?"

"Yes, I do."

Morgana blinked. Merlin sighed.

"What happened to you, Morgana?" he asked. "We used to be friends. Good friends."

"Yes, we were. But then you poisoned me." Under the anger and indignation, Merlin heard the hurt and betrayal in her voice, and he exhaled deeply.

"I know. And I'm sorry about that – truly, I am. I should have found another way. Maybe then none of this would have happened."

"Maybe." Morgana's anger cooled somewhat at his honest admission and sincere regret. She hesitated before adding, "I'm sorry too. For…everything. You may have hurt me first, but I did it a thousand times more to you. And you at least had a good reason for what you did. I didn't – unless you count power and greed."

Merlin actually cracked a small smile. "No, I don't think those count at all."

Morgana seemed to debate with herself for a few minutes before she opened her mouth again – and this time everything came spilling out. "Merlin, I'm so sorry for everything I did. I was angry and betrayed and afraid – I know that doesn't excuse my actions, but I thought I had no other choice. I was wrong, and I'm so ashamed. What I did was horrible, and awful, and cruel – and I'm more sorry than I can ever say. But I promise you – I swear on my life that I no longer bear any ill will for you or Arthur or Gwen or Camelot. Merlin, I'm sorry."

She was nearly in tears by the end of her fervent outburst, and she abruptly looked down at the floor, ashamed. Merlin felt a warm feeling diffuse inside him as he observed her. _This _was the Morgana he knew and loved. This was the Morgana of old, the Morgana who had defended him to Arthur and Uther, who had helped him defend Ealdor, who had laughed and joked with him.

This was the Morgana who was his friend.

"Morgana," he began, causing her to lift her gaze to him. The words stuck in his throat, so he tried again. "Morgana," he said, more firmly, "A lot has happened between us. Some would say too much has been done to ever be forgiven."

Morgana bit her lip and nodded, crestfallen. Merlin's next words, however, changed that.

"But not me."

At this, Morgana glanced sharply at him again, her glass green eyes piercing through his own. "Do you actually mean…?"

Merlin nodded. "I do. We were friends once, Morgana, and I believe we can be again. I'm not saying it's going to be easy – in fact, it'll probably be the hardest thing either of us has ever done – but I'm willing to try if you are. I know what it's like to be lost and alone, and I blame myself a little for what happened to you."

Surprised, Morgana started, "Don't –", but Merlin held up his hand, prompting her back to silence.

"Let me finish. I knew what you were going through. I knew you were scared. I could – I _should _– have been a better friend. I should have tried harder to help you. The fault lies on both sides." He sighed. "Morgana, I've spent the last three years missing my friend. Now she's back, and I'd like to be there for her, if I may. Will you let me be your friend again?"

Morgana's lip trembled. She so desperately wanted that, more than anything – but could they really put their past aside just like that?

"Do you really forgive me for what I've done?" she asked timidly, almost afraid to hear the answer.

Merlin was silent for so long Morgana feared what he would say; but then he nodded firmly and said, "Yes. I forgive you, Morgana, for everything."

And that – Merlin's simple kindness and willingness to forgive – was the last straw for Morgana. Her eyes filled with tears and she impulsively closed the distance between them, practically falling onto Merlin's chest as he opened his arms to embrace her.

"Morgana," he murmured, still guarded. "I'm glad you're back. I can't tell you how many times I've wished for this to happen."

Morgana, noticing the cautious tone in his voice, pulled back to search his face. "But?" she prodded.

Merlin's gaze hardened, his eyes becoming steel. "But if you ever threaten Arthur or Camelot again, I will not hesitate to fight against you with all I have. I will kill you if I have to. I won't forgive you a second time."

Morgana shuddered at the stern note in his voice, and she nodded.

It wasn't perfect, but it was a start. Morgana still couldn't see how she would ever be truly forgiven, but she believed that Merlin would stand by her as a friend once more. And that was enough for now.

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_**A/N: I just want to take a moment to assure you that while the earlier chapters of this story are rather short, starting next chapter, they get pretty long. You should be happy to know that :)**_


	7. The Revelation of a Lifetime

**_A/N: As promised, here's a much longer chapter than the others before. It also happens to be one of my favourites for this story :) Thanks so much to_**_ Kool Kato, Haley Renee, sweety2010, Neonlights, missymappy, Fear Her Timelord, StarBolt1966, Alaia Skyhawk, xXxDaughteroftheKingxXx, matri540, merlinismylife,_**_ and _**_xxchibinessxx_**_ for reviewing!_**

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**The Revelation of a Lifetime**

Arthur, Gwaine, and Elyan rode for the better part of a day before they came in sight of the druid camp. The trio spent one night in the forest before venturing inside the boundaries of the camp in the morning.

As they passed, the druids stopped what they were doing to watch. Their expressions and postures were wary, defensive, barely concealing a healthy dose of fear. But they made no move to attack, content instead to simply observe them until they revealed their purpose. Their stares were unnerving, but Arthur took it all in stride. If the druids noticed that he kept one hand on the pommel of his sword at all times, they did not comment.

At length, the three knights approached an old man who looked to be their best option. The druid's hair was white, but his face was marked by a minimum of lines. His posture was tall and straight, his neutral expression strong. Arthur was startled to realise that he recognised him.

"I know you," he said. "You were the druid who took the boy – Mordred – from my care."

The druid inclined his head in acknowledgment. "Well met, Arthur Pendragon."

Arthur started to relax a little – just a little. He knew this druid – and even trusted him to a certain extent. "I'm afraid I am at a disadvantage," he said. "You know my name, but I do not know yours."

The barest hint of a smile appeared on the druid's face. "My name is Iseldir."

Arthur absorbed that. "I bid you greeting, Iseldir."

"Let us not waste time with pleasantries, Your Highness. What is it you want?"

Arthur nodded, almost glad for Iseldir's blunt, direct manner; Camelot didn't have time for him to waste on formalities. He inhaled deeply.

"I'm looking for the warlock Emrys."

Gasps erupted from the watching crowd. Arthur Pendragon of Camelot sought Emrys? Surely this signalled something momentous.

Iseldir's eyes narrowed slightly. "Why do you seek Emrys?" he questioned.

"Camelot is under attack," Arthur replied. "Emrys is our only hope." His voice changed slightly, becoming just a bit entreating. "Please. We need his help." Later, he would tell himself he wasn't begging – no, definitely not – he was merely utilising strategic communication skills to persuade an unwilling, possibly hostile, party. That's _all _there was to it.

To his utmost surprise, Iseldir smiled. "Then I welcome you, Arthur Pendragon, for if you are here seeking Emrys for help, it means you have conquered your prejudice against magic."

"Er, okay…" Arthur didn't know what to make of that. "Do you know where I can find him?"

"Emrys is here, Arthur, in this very camp."

Mixed amounts of relief, elation, and anxiety surged through Arthur. "Where?"

"You will find him in one of the tents on the western border of our camp. His is the third from the right in the second row." An amused glint entered Iseldir's eyes. "A word of caution, Arthur Pendragon – Emrys will not be who you expect. Remember that when you meet him."

Arthur nodded and thanked him. Then he, Gwaine, and Elyan started off in the direction of their quarry.

**MERLIN**

Merlin was getting ready to return to Camelot when he heard a very familiar voice just outside his tent. He froze; it was a voice he'd know anywhere.

Arthur.

Merlin was trying to decide whether to reveal himself or stay in the tent until Arthur left when his dilemma was solved for him, quite unexpectedly, by the opening of his tent flap. Three people came in – all very familiar figures.

A second later, he stared straight into Arthur's amazed expression.

_"Merlin?" _Arthur said incredulously.

"Um…hi," Merlin offered weakly.

"_Mer_lin, what the hell are you doing here?" Arthur demanded while Gwaine and Elyan stared at him in shock. "Where have you _been _these past two weeks? What were you _thinking_, leaving Camelot like that?"

"Arthur, I can explain…"

"Give me one good reason, Merlin, why I shouldn't fire you right now."

Merlin sighed. There wasn't any point in hiding it. "I was…um…I was looking for Morgana." He focused on a point above Arthur's head, holding his breath.

Arthur froze. Nobody moved for an eternity.

"Looking. For. Morgana," Arthur repeated slowly.

"Yes." Merlin nodded furiously. On second thought, maybe it hadn't been such a great idea to actually tell the truth. How on earth was he going to explain this one?

_"Looking. For. Morgana." _Arthur, it seemed, was dumbfounded, struck speechless by the sheer idiocy of that one act.

"Arthur?" Merlin said nervously. "You're kind of starting to worry me…"

"You should be worrying about _yourself, _Merlin," Arthur hissed, grabbing his manservant by his shirt and pulling him towards him. "Do you honestly, seriously mean to tell me that you left Camelot in the middle of a crisis to _look for Morgana_?"

"Er…" Merlin floundered.

"_Mer_lin, what were you _thinking_? Have you _completely _lost your mind? How _stupid _do you have to be not to realise that searching for an enemy sorceress _alone _is _not _a good idea? Do you have absolutely _no _sense of self-preservation?"

"If you would calm down, maybe I'd be able to explain it to you," Merlin replied heatedly.

With effort, Arthur managed to control himself. He released his hold on Merlin's shirt and attempted to keep some semblance of calm.

"All right." He barely managed to avoid growling the words. "_Explain_, then."

"I went looking for Morgana because I thought I might be able to stop her before she reached Camelot."

At this, Arthur's fury peaked again, turning his face brick red. "Are you _insane_? How in the _world _could you _possibly _think that _you _would be able to stop _Morgana_?"

"She's different now, Arthur," Merlin defended, conveniently ignoring the question. "She's changed. She's not evil anymore."

"Not evil…she's a _sorceress_, Merlin – how many times do I have to pound that into your thick head? Magic _is _evil."

"Do you really believe that?" Merlin asked quietly.

Arthur stared disbelievingly at him. "I'm going to pretend you did not just ask me that question. Good God, Merlin – haven't you seen _enough _of evil sorcerers to know that?"

"That just means that _they _were evil, not the magic!" Merlin responded. "Those sorcerers were evil because they _chose _to use their magic for bad things. Magic in and of itself is not evil – it's just like any other weapon. It's how we choose to _use _it that makes it good or bad."

"Watch yourself, Merlin," Arthur warned. "You're treading on dangerous ground."

"I don't really care!" Merlin fired back, exploding with a passion neither Gwaine nor Elyan had seen before. "I'm sick of the same old, tired, superstitious belief. If magic is evil, how do you explain the peacefulness of the druids? How do you explain Anhora lifting the curse on Camelot, or Will taking that arrow for you? Or why Grettir said you needed magic to succeed on your quest to find the Fisher King?"

"Merlin…" Arthur growled warningly; but his manservant just ranted on, oblivious.

"Tell me something, Arthur," he challenged. "If magic is evil, why have you yourself considered, on several occasions, that it might not be?"

Arthur opened and closed his mouth wordlessly.

"Magic is _not _evil. Yes, I admit that a lot of people have attacked Camelot with magic – but those who do are mainly seeking revenge. _They _were wronged _first_. I'm not excusing their actions, but they were only _reacting _to the injustices done to them. And yes, a lot of people _do _use magic for evil – but there are also a lot who use it for good."

"Okay…let's pretend for a moment that that's true…"

"It _is _true!" Merlin exclaimed. "How many times do _I _have to get that into _your _thick head? Magic _can _and _has _been used for good – you're just too much of a clotpole to see it! If you would only just _accept _that, maybe Camelot wouldn't be attacked so many times!" By the end of his outburst, Merlin was panting slightly. Some part of his brain registered that Gwaine and Elyan had been so silent throughout the whole exchange, they might not even have been there at all.

"Are you done?" Arthur asked, deceptively mildly.

"Yeah," Merlin admitted; it had felt good to get all that off his chest.

"Good," Arthur said. "Because I'm going to –"

"Merlin?" a new voice spoke up. "I thought you were going to –" Morgana stopped dead and stared in horror at Arthur, who was gaping at her in equal shock.

Within seconds, all three – Arthur, Gwaine, and Elyan – had their swords at Morgana's neck.

"Do. Not. Move," Arthur hissed.

"Arthur, please," Morgana pleaded.

"How dare you speak his name?" Elyan demanded, pressing the tip of his blade through Morgana's clothes.

"Stop it, all of you!" Merlin, again – this time deliberately placing himself between Morgana and Arthur's sword. The three warriors in the tent all blinked at his act.

"Merlin, step aside," Arthur ordered.

Merlin obstinately shook his head. "I will not."

"Merlin…" Arthur growled.

"No!" Merlin refused. "Arthur, I know she's done a lot to hurt us, but she's sorry for all that. She really has changed. Part of the reason she became evil in the first place was because she was scared. She didn't ask for her magic. You should have seen her when she discovered she had it, Arthur – she was terrified. But she never would have turned traitor if…if certain things hadn't happened."

"Her actions…"

"…are her own, I know. But she really is sorry. Maybe it's time to let go of all that. I realise it's probably too soon for you to forgive her, and I know she's done too much for us to forget just like that – but _I'_ve forgiven her, and I'm not going to let you point a sword at her when we have a chance to make this right."

Arthur's eyes narrowed. "Morgana?"

Morgana inhaled shakily. "It's true, Arthur. I am truly, deeply sorry for everything I did. I don't expect you to ever forgive me, but I _am _sorry."

Arthur considered that for several seconds. "Move, Merlin."

"Arthur –"

"Do as I say!"

Merlin reluctantly moved aside, leaving Morgana at Arthur's mercy. The young king was in the midst of a vicious internal struggle. He wanted to believe Morgana truly had changed – deep down, he knew he still loved her – but he couldn't just ignore everything she had done. Morgana herself kept her head down, awaiting Arthur's decision.

At long last, Arthur lowered his sword. Morgana looked up in surprise as he sheathed his blade. Gwaine and Elyan, still wary, followed his example.

"Arthur…" Morgana began, her voice full of emotion. Arthur held up his hand.

"Save it," he told her. "I'm not doing this because I forgive you – because I _don't. _You betrayed me, Morgana – you broke my trust, so if you're sincere about this, you're going to have to earn it back."

Morgana looked puzzled. "Then why –"

Arthur sighed resignedly. "Because," he answered, "Merlin, for some unfathomable reason, trusts you. And I trust Merlin." He could not help noticing the wide grin on Merlin's face at his words, but he resolved to ignore it. "So, let's call this a…truce, of sorts. But Morgana," he added, "if you break this truce, if you betray us _again _– I will kill you."

Morgana nodded. She seemed to hesitate a bit before speaking up again. "Can I ask you a question?"

Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing here?"

_Of course, _Arthur remembered. _Emrys. _Between finding Merlin here, discovering that the idiot had come _looking _for Morgana, and the appearance of Morgana herself, he had completely forgotten his original purpose for coming here in the first place.

"Camelot is under attack again by your evil twin sister."

Morgana shook her head, confused. "Morgause is dead, and she was hardly my twin. She can't be –"

"I'm not talking about Morgause." Arthur pursed his lips as he tried to think of a quick way to explain this. "This sorceress calls herself Morgan le Fay. She looks exactly like you, and she said something about being who _you _should have been, if you had continued on your path of hate and destruction. Is that about right?" he asked Gwaine and Elyan; they nodded in confirmation.

"That still doesn't explain why you're here, Arthur," Merlin pointed out. Arthur glared at him.

"That's because I haven't finished, _Mer_lin. As I was saying, Morgan le Fay took over the throne. She now sits as Queen of Camelot. The only way to stop her is by magic, and apparently there's only one person powerful enough to help us." Arthur took a breath before continuing, as if he couldn't believe what he was about to say. "I'm looking for Emrys."

Morgana's eyes went wide at the mention of her nemesis' name. Arthur wondered about that, but he was more concerned about Merlin's reaction. The manservant had gone even paler than usual, losing what little colour he had.

"You're…actually turning to magic for help?" Morgana said, as if she couldn't believe it. Arthur scowled at her, momentarily distracted.

"Yes, and I'll thank you not to tell me how to run my kingdom."

"One of the druids outside told us this Emrys fellow would be in this tent," Gwaine spoke up. "But he's obviously not, so I'm trying to figure out if he lied or if he meant something else altogether."

"Merlin, what _is _the matter with you?" Arthur demanded. His idiot of a manservant was now staring blankly into empty air. It was actually starting to worry Arthur a bit, but there was no way he was going to let Merlin know that.

"Emrys…" Merlin muttered, seemingly to no one.

"Do you know him?" Elyan inquired. Merlin did live with Gaius, after all.

Merlin seemed to snap back to himself. "Know him?" he repeated. "Of course I know him. He's me."

"What _are _you going on about?" Arthur snapped. He was in no mood for riddles.

Merlin's gaze turned to him, solemn and grave. "He's me, Arthur. I'm Emrys."

* * *

_**A/N: Dun-dun-dun-dun! Cue dramatic music, and then...cliffie! Come back tomorrow for the long-awaited reveal! **_


	8. The Secrets of Years Bygone

**_A/N: Remember two chapters back when I was floating on cloud nine because I got 16 reviews? Yeah, I'm back there again - 'cause today I got 23 reviews! Thank you, _**_jayley, chawk1993, NightmareNaka, Lady Dunla, merlinismylife, CarolineEirasSa, aly-child, sweety2010, Kool Kato, Galaya, Alexis, rmatri540, Alaia Skyhawk, lilyflower1345, , DusksDarkness, ruby890, xXxAngiexXx, Alierana, Melgaye, LoveCanConquerAll, GoldJinx170,_**_ and _**_Haley Renee_**_ for reviewing!_**

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**The Secrets of Years Bygone**

Arthur's first reaction was to laugh. Because of course, Merlin couldn't possibly be serious. The idea that his skinny manservant could be _magic, _of all things – let alone the most powerful warlock in all the land – was so absurdly beyond ridiculous it wasn't even funny.

Then he saw Merlin's dead serious face and doubts began to sprout in his head. Maybe it _was _true. After all, it would explain all of Merlin's cryptic hints about how many times he had supposedly saved Arthur's life, not to mention his constant, _wise _words about destiny and greatness and whatnot. It also explained Merlin's unbelievably good luck. Really, what were the odds of a skinny, untrained servant like him going into countless battles and skirmishes with no armour or weapons and escaping mostly unscathed? It defied logic. Also, there was that matter of all the branches and rocks that fell at _just _the right moment, and enemies conveniently tripping over themselves just as they're about to deal a blow. Arthur used to think that they just had extraordinarily good luck, but now he wasn't so sure…

_No, _he told himself firmly. No, it wasn't possible. Merlin could not have _magic_. Arthur would have known if he had – for heaven's sake, he had known the man five years, and they were constantly together, day in, day out. There was no way Merlin could have hidden this from him – Merlin, who couldn't keep a secret to save his life. It was utterly impossible.

And yet, when exactly had he started to get so lucky? Five years ago, when Merlin came into the picture…

"That's not possible," Morgana said with conviction – and Arthur turned his attention to her, glad to have someone who supported his logic that Merlin could not possibly be a _sorcerer_. "I've seen Emrys. I've fought him. And you're definitely not him."

"Are you sure?" Merlin asked.

"Emrys is an old man!" Morgana exclaimed. "He's a powerful sorcerer with long white hair and a beard, and an absurd way of speaking…"

_Hang on. _Arthur frowned. That sounded very much like an old sorcerer he knew. "…and irritatingly familiar blue eyes?" he suggested. Morgana nodded, surprised.

"Yes. Exactly."

"That's not Emrys," Arthur said dismissively. "His name's Draga, or Draboon, or some other such ridiculous thing…"

"Dragoon," Merlin supplied. "And he's not ridiculous."

"Oh, shut up, Merlin. How would you know? You're never even with me whenever I encounter him. Although I swear, that old sorcerer sounds a lot like you, and he's just as annoying as you are, and…" Arthur's eyes widened as recognition dawned. "No…" he began. "That isn't possible…"

Morgana peered more closely at Merlin, unable to believe what she saw. "And his eyes are exactly like yours!" she realised. "Merlin, do you mean to say Emrys was _you _all along?"

"Forget Emrys," Arthur said. "Do you mean to say that outlandish _Dragoon _character was you?"

"Took you long enough," Merlin muttered.

"But _how _is that possible?" Elyan questioned.

"Because I have magic," Merlin admitted. "I used an aging spell to make me look older to become Dragoon when I needed a disguise. Then later I bumped into Morgana while I was Dragoon, and she thought I was Emrys – which I am…"

"Merlin, you're not making sense," Arthur complained. "Explain this _properly_."

Merlin looked exasperated. "It's going to be a little hard to do that if you don't accept that I have magic."

"Because you don't!"

"Really?" Merlin challenged, his heart thumping loudly at what he was about to do. "_Forbaerne._" His friends jumped as his eyes flashed gold and a flame of fire appeared in his cupped hand.

"Magic," Arthur gasped, staring accusingly at Merlin, feeling like the world had just fallen out from under his feet. "All this time, you were practising _magic_?"

"Arthur, believe me, I've only ever used it to help people – usually you. The number of times I've saved your life…"

Arthur's emotions were turning in so many different directions he didn't know which to follow. On one hand, he was hurt, angry that Merlin had betrayed him by practising magic, and then lied about it for years. On the other hand, he was inclined to believe Merlin when he said he only used it for good, because Merlin was _Merlin _and no matter what Arthur said about magic, Merlin couldn't be evil. Still another side of him was contemplating that perhaps it was true what Merlin said – that magic _could _be used for good, and he should be glad that Emrys turned out to be someone he trusted above all.

More confused than he had ever been in his life, Arthur closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, while Merlin watched him anxiously.

"Arthur?" he said cautiously. "I swear, I'm completely loyal to you. I've only used my magic to help, and –"

"Please, Merlin," Arthur said tiredly, "let me think." Merlin obediently felt silent, but Arthur could feel his eyes on him still.

At length, Arthur spoke again. "All right, Merlin. It's clear that you have magic, but I can't deny that you _have _been a loyal and trusted servant for years, so I'm going to reserve judgment until I hear the whole story."

Merlin's eyes lit up with hope. "Yes, Sire," he agreed eagerly. "Where do you want me to start?"

"The beginning, Merlin. And don't leave anything out. I want _all _the facts."

Merlin nodded and immediately launched into his tale. "Well, first of all, magic wasn't something I chose to do. I was _born _with it. It's just as much a part of me as breathing."

"Does that mean your whole village knew about it?" Arthur wanted to know.

"No, only my mother and Will. But in a small village like Ealdor, people notice that you're…different. So my mother sent me to Camelot to learn how to use my magic from Gaius."

"Hold up," Arthur said. "You were born with magic. You've had it your whole life."

"Exactly," said Merlin, pleased that Arthur was starting to understand.

"So you're a sorcerer," Arthur continued. "And you came to _Camelot_, of all places?" He rolled his eyes. "Just when I thought you couldn't get any _more_ moronic."

"Believe it or not, it's easier to hide in Camelot. Anyway, as I was saying, I went to live with Gaius. Gaius told me I'd have to keep my magic hidden, but he agreed to train me. Then, on my first day, I met you and thought you were an arrogant prat…"

"Excuse me?" Arthur said indignantly as Gwaine laughed loudly.

"…and I wanted nothing to do with you, but then I bumped into the Great Dragon…"

"How do you _bump into _a creature that's chained up in the tunnels?"

"…and he told me I'm supposed to protect you because you're destined to be the Once and Future King who will unite the five kingdoms into the land of Albion. Then I saved you from Mary Collins' assassination attempt, and I ended up being your manservant."

"You did that with magic, didn't you?"

A look of exasperation appeared on Merlin's face. "Yes, I did – and if you keep interrupting, we're going to be here till next year. Just please hear me out before you ask your questions, and I'll do my best to answer them, okay?"

Arthur crossed his arms and waited. Merlin noticed that the rest of his friends were listening intently, no doubt full of questions of their own, but unlike Arthur, patient enough to wait until he had finished.

"Princess," Gwaine said; Arthur scowled at the nickname. "I get the feeling that Merlin here's got a long, complicated tale to tell us. Five years is a lot to cover. So maybe it would help if you didn't keep interrupting him to ask questions. Save them for later, eh?"

Arthur sighed. "Fine. Get on with it, Merlin."

So, for the next few hours, Merlin explained everything that had happened since he had come to live in Camelot. He told them about Valiant's shield, Lancelot's slaying of the griffin, and Excalibur's origins. He spoke about Nimueh, Cornelius Sigan, and Morgana's prophetic dreams and the manifestation of her magic. He admitted that he had lied about the truth of Arthur's birth in order to keep Arthur from doing something he would regret. He even briefly summarised what happened with Freya – but that was one subject Arthur would not allow him to just gloss over.

"Freya was the Bastet?" Arthur inquired. Merlin bobbed his head curtly.

"Yes. It wasn't her fault – she was cursed. She couldn't stop herself." There was a faraway look in Merlin's eyes.

"You loved her." It wasn't a question.

"I did. Now can we get back to the story?" At Arthur's nod, Merlin continued. The next thing on the list was the release of the Great Dragon – and Arthur, of course, jumped on that.

"That was _you_?" he exclaimed. "_You _released him?"

"I didn't have a choice," Merlin defended himself. "I had to give my word in exchange for the spell to defeat Sigan. When Kilgharrah –"

"Who?" Elyan wondered.

"The Great Dragon. Kilgharrah is his name. When he called me to fulfil my promise, I had to. I never would have agreed to release him if I'd known what he was going to do."

"You're just lucky I killed him, Merlin," Arthur said. "Who knows what else he would have done."

"Actually…" Merlin looked sheepish. Arthur's eyes narrowed.

"Don't tell me." He sighed. "I didn't kill him, did I?"

"Nope," Merlin admitted. "The truth is, I ordered him to leave and never return, on pain of death."

"You _ordered _a dragon to leave?" Morgana said incredulously. "How?"

"I, er, well…I'm not just a warlock…I'm also a Dragonlord."

"A Dragon…" Arthur shook his head. "Merlin, if you were a Dragonlord, why the hell did we have to go on a wild goose chase to find Balinor? Given the circumstances, I'm sure my father would have excused you at the time."

"I wasn't a Dragonlord _then_," Merlin clarified.

Arthur's eye twitched. "Merlin…"

"Dragonlord powers are passed from father to son upon death," Merlin explained. "I wasn't a Dragonlord before we left Camelot to look for Balinor, because my father hadn't died yet."

Arthur frowned. "But Balinor was the last Dragonlord, and he died, so…" He blinked in shock and stared at Merlin. "Balinor was your father?" he said incredulously.

Merlin sighed. "Yes."

"_Mer_lin, why didn't you _tell _me? I met your father and didn't even know it. And I told you when he died that no man is worth your tears. How could you let me be so _stupid_?"

"Don't blame yourself, Arthur," Merlin said hastily. "I was the one who didn't tell you."

Arthur pointed a finger at him. "You and I are going to have a talk about all this later."

Merlin nodded. Then he went on with his story. He told them how he defeated Cenred's army by breaking the hawthorn staff in the catacombs – and again, Arthur, unable to restrain himself, interrupted.

"Morgana said she did that."

"I lied," Morgana confessed quietly. "I didn't want to blow my cover, and I thought it was a good way to show Uther I was still 'loyal' to him."

The tale went on. The secrets behind the Crystal Cave, Grunhilda's appearance in Camelot, the quest for the Fisher King's Trident, and Morgana's first conquest of Camelot with the Cup of Life and her immortal army were revealed, as was Merlin's part in them. Merlin quickly glossed over the incident with the Dorocha, but spent quite a bit of time explaining exactly what had happened when Arthur asked Dragoon for help healing Uther. When he admitted to rescuing the white dragon egg, then calling the dragon inside to hatch, Morgana broke in.

"That white dragon…she's the one who healed me, isn't she?"

Merlin nodded in confirmation before quickly summarising the events leading up to, surrounding, and following his attempted assassinations of Arthur while under the Formorrah's control. Arthur noticed that Morgana looked guilt-ridden throughout the whole retelling of this incident, which no doubt inspired Merlin to spend no more than five minutes on it before he moved on to tell them the truth about Lancelot's miraculous return from the dead and subsequent betrayal with Guinevere. After that, Merlin briefly explained what he did during Morgana's second conquest of Camelot before finally ending his long account.

There was a long beat of silence as everyone digested this. Merlin hovered anxiously, awaiting Arthur's reaction. He'd appeared to take the revelation of Merlin's magic well enough, but he did say he was only going to reserve judgment until he'd heard the full story. Now he had, and it was impossible to predict what he was going to say.

Gwaine was the first to speak. "Arthur, you're not seriously planning on punishing Merlin for having magic, are you? From what he's told us, he's done a hell of a lot to keep you alive and Camelot safe."

"Persecuting him for his magic would be poor repayment," Elyan agreed.

Morgana looked as though she wanted to say something too, but she refrained. Arthur sighed.

"I know you have something to say, Morgana. Spit it out."

"It's just…" Morgana hesitated. "Merlin has done the exact opposite of what I did. He was just as scared as I was about having magic in Camelot, but he didn't let that turn him evil. He put his life on the line for you countless times, and was willing to let others take the praise for what he's done. If you shun him now, Arthur Pendragon, you're no better than Uther was."

Arthur scowled, but he acknowledged the truth of her words. His gaze travelled from her to Gwaine and Elyan before landing on Merlin, who was still tense.

"Oh, don't look so serious, Merlin," Arthur said. "Honestly. You're the worst servant in the world, and I haven't killed you yet. There's precious little you can do to change that now."

Merlin grinned widely. Arthur had accepted him. The dawn of Albion was truly at hand.

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_**A/N: Well, there you go - that's my first Merlin reveal ever. I hope I did it justice. Arthur's reaction was the hardest to write; because really, sometimes he seems like he'd accept magic, but then you remember that he's so utterly convinced Merlin doesn't have magic that he's covered for him even when he explicitly says he DOES (remember the Mark of Nimueh?). So yeah, difficult, but not impossible :)**_


	9. The Acceptance of Friends

**_A/N: Well, apparently the reveal scene went fairly okay :) Thanks to _**_Haley Renee, ljbookworm, Stormyskies89, StarBolt1966, sweety2010, Alaia Skyhawk, GoldJinx170, CarolinaEirasSa, Galaya, carinims01, Madeline Khill,_**_ and _**_Minch_**_ for reviewing on the last chapter!_**

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**The Acceptance of Friends**

Guinevere paced back and forth on the carpet of moss. Three days in the forest had removed her from her finery as Queen of Camelot; for the moment, she was back to being plain old Gwen, the serving girl used to hardships and trials. That was the aspect of her most suited to the small camp they had set up, which was relatively isolated from the rest of Camelot's populace who had fled to the woods.

"How long more do you think they'll be?" she asked anxiously.

Gaius simply shrugged. "It's impossible to say. I have no idea how far the druid camp is from here."

"Not to mention," Leon added, "that Arthur will likely keep looking for Emrys if he doesn't find him in that camp."

Gwen blew out her breath in frustration as she sat down. "I can't stand the waiting," she admitted. "I hate not knowing where they are, or what's happening…"

"I know." Percival, never one to say much, silently reached out his hand to pat Gwen's lap. It was a gesture of familiarity that proved how tight-knit their little group was.

"We must trust Arthur," Gaius said wisely. "He will find Emrys, and Emrys will help us."

"How do you know Emrys, Gaius?" Leon asked curiously from his seat on a tree stump. Gwen and Percival turned to look at the physician.

Gaius pursed his lips, choosing his words carefully. "I've…encountered him a few times."

"In Camelot?" Leon pressed.

"Yes."

"And you never told Arthur about it?"

"There was no reason to. Emrys would never have hurt Arthur or threatened Camelot in any way, and he was better able to help by staying hidden. I realise I was going against the law, but I truly believe it was for the best. Under the circumstances, revealing Emrys' presence would have done more harm than good." Gaius gave Leon a look, an obvious signal to drop the subject; but Leon either didn't see it, or he pretended not to.

"And he told you this himself?" he questioned. "He told you personally that he meant Camelot no harm?"

"He did," Gaius affirmed.

"How could you be so sure you could trust him? He's a sorcerer – he could have been lying to you all along and biding his time, pretending to protect Camelot, only to betray it at the crucial moment."

"I do not believe that." Gaius' statement was quiet, but firm, resolute, and unyielding.

"Why?" Percival wanted to know.

Gaius sighed. "I know it is a foreign concept, but what you must understand is that sorcery in and of itself is not evil; just like any other weapon, only the bearer is responsible for what it does. The bearer alone is the one who puts magic to use for good or evil. Emrys has done nothing but use his magic for good, and I know him well…as do you all."

They all frowned.

"Gaius, you're not making sense," Gwen said. "None of us knows Emrys."

Gaius smiled an enigmatic smile. "I told you before that Emrys has been hiding in plain sight. You all know him, just by a different name."

"What name?" Gwen asked.

"You wouldn't believe us if we told you," a new voice intruded. They all turned to see Arthur making his way into the clearing, followed by Gwaine and Elyan.

"Arthur!" Gwen ran to embrace him. Leon and Percival, on the other hand, raised their swords at the sight of Morgana trailing a little behind the knights.

"Leon, Perce, don't," Gwaine said. "She's with us."

"Morgana's with you?" Leon questioned in disbelief.

"Have you been hitting the tankard too hard again, Gwaine?" Percival asked, equally incredulous.

"He hasn't." Everyone stared as Merlin came into view next to Morgana.

_"Merlin?" _Leon and Percival both exclaimed.

"Morgana's reformed," he informed them, stepping ever so subtly closer to and in front of her. "She has Arthur's pardon."

"Sire, is this true?" a shell-shocked Leon queried, glancing at his king.

Arthur nodded. "She's not a threat."

Warily, Leon and Percival lowered their swords – the latter more reluctantly, because of previous experiences; Cenred, on Morgana's orders, had cost him his entire family. Gaius made his way to Merlin and hugged him.

"What were you saying before, Arthur?" Gwen asked. "About us not believing you if you told us what name we knew Emrys by?"

To her enormous surprise, Arthur grinned. Turning to Merlin, he said, "Well, Merlin? Would you like to tell them how Emrys is no other than the most idiotic manservant Camelot has ever seen?"

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Prat," he muttered under his breath; Gaius raised an eyebrow that spoke volumes.

Leon, however, frowned. "I don't understand, Sire."

"Think, Leon," Arthur said, clearly enjoying himself; Merlin rolled his eyes again. "Who's the most incompetent servant you know?" At his knight's blank look, he elaborated, "Who's the person _I _say is the most useless servant around?"

"Well…" Leon's eyes unconsciously flickered to Merlin.

"Go ahead, Leon," Arthur coaxed. "Say it. He won't mind."

"Well, that would be Merlin, Sire."

Arthur nodded, waiting for Leon to put two and two together. But apparently the idea that Merlin was magic was just as implausible to the knight as it had been to him, because Leon's face remained blank and confused.

"I said earlier that Emrys is also the worst servant ever," Arthur supplied helpfully. That seemed to do the trick; Leon's eyes widened.

"You don't mean to say…?"

"That Merlin's Emrys?" Arthur nodded, smirking. "Yes, I do."

Gwen's brow creased slightly. "But that's ridiculous," she protested, looking up at Arthur. "Merlin doesn't even have magic."

"Oh, but he does," Gwaine corrected. "Quite a lot of it, too. Go on, Merlin, show them." He nudged the warlock, a huge grin splitting his face. Merlin scowled at him.

"I am not a piece of meat to put on display."

"Stop being such a girl, Merlin," Arthur said. "You're supposed to be the most powerful warlock ever. Act like one."

Merlin muttered something under his breath.

"What was that?" Arthur asked. Merlin glared.

"Fine," he relented, striding to the centre of the group. He held out his hand over Gaius' worn, sagging tent and muttered a spell. An instant later, the tent hitched up and stood straight of its own accord.

"See?" Gwaine said, still heartily enjoying the looks of absolute shock on Leon's and Percival's faces.

"Blimey, Merlin," Percival said, wide-eyed. "You've had magic this whole time?"

Merlin nodded.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Gwen said in sudden realisation. "You're the one who cured my father that one time."

"Yeah," Merlin admitted.

"So Merlin is Emrys," Leon said, still trying to wrap his mind around it.

"Apparently," Arthur agreed.

"Master of hiding in plain sight…" Percival spun to face Gaius, whose face was schooled into a relatively neutral expression. "You were right. None of us even _suspected _Merlin of having magic, and it turns out he's the most powerful warlock in the world."

"And the only one who can defeat Morgan le Fay," Gwen added softly, reminding them of the importance Emrys played in retaking Camelot. Everyone sobered.

"We need a plan," Arthur decided. "Morgan le Fay has a large army of magical creatures at her disposal, and there are still hundreds of people within the city itself – people who could get hurt. We can't just barge back into Camelot, Emrys or no Emrys."

"Merlin," Merlin said firmly.

"What?" Arthur asked distractedly.

"My name is Merlin," the servant repeated. "I may be Emrys, but that is _not _my name."

"Did I _say _it was?" Arthur demanded. "One thing's for sure, _Mer_lin – you're still just as much of a girl as ever. When I said Emrys, I was talking about the sorcerer side of you."

Merlin blinked. "Oh," he said intelligently.

"Yes, _oh_," Arthur said. "Getting back to the _important _things…"

"If I may, Sire," Elyan interrupted, earning a brief flash of irritation from his brother-in-law.

"What is it?"

"I'm sure you remember, Sire, that we are not the only ones hiding in the forest. We have maybe two hundred citizens encamped less than ten yards away. If we are going to retake the city, Merlin will most likely have to fight in the open. Perhaps it would be a good idea to inform the people of his abilities and reaffirm his loyalty to us, so no one tries to kill him?"

Arthur blinked, taken aback. "Good idea, Elyan," he agreed. "I hadn't even thought of that."

"And what of me?" Morgana inquired, doing her best to ignore the glares from Leon and Percival.

"Arthur, Morgana cannot be allowed to be seen by the people of Camelot," Gaius said at once. "They all fear her far too much to trust that she has truly reformed."

Morgana scowled, looking for once like the royal she used to be, before dropping her gaze to the forest floor.

"I agree," Arthur concurred. "Morgana, until we have time to explain your change of heart, you are to stay hidden and not, under any circumstances, reveal yourself to anyone outside this group. As for all of you, no one is to even _mention _her name until such time when we are ready to explain. Is that clear?"

Murmurs of assent answered him, and Arthur, satisfied, turned to Merlin.

"Well, come on, then. It's time to go introduce you to the people."

**MERLIN**

All things considered, Merlin reflected, it could have gone a lot worse. Arthur had called every citizen of Camelot in the forest to a mass meeting. After saying a short little speech to perk up their spirits, he then went on to a longer speech about the ban against magic and how it could be wrong – a declaration that, of course, caused many gasps and raised eyebrows.

"I have recently learned," Arthur had said, "that magic is not, as we have all believed for so long, evil. I realise that enemies such as Morgana and Morgan le Fay and numerous others have used magic against Camelot in the past, but they are but one side of the coin. I have only just discovered that there has been benevolent magic at work in Camelot for years – magic that has fought against evil magic on more than one occasion, and probably saved all our lives countless times. I understand that it is a difficult concept to grasp after believing magic to be nothing but evil for so long, but it is our only hope now.

"Morgan le Fay is extremely powerful, but some of you were there when she as good as told us that there is one person, and one person only, who can stop her. In her prideful speeches, she even gave us the name of this person. He is the one the druids call Emrys, rumoured to be the greatest sorcerer the world has ever, or will ever, know. When I set out to find Emrys to ask for his help, I never dreamed I would discover him to be a familiar face, one who has stood at my side and been my loyal friend for years."

Despite himself, Merlin, hiding in the bushes behind where Arthur was standing, smiled. The prat was monologuing (_Probably loving the sound of his own voice, _Merlin mused), and making this affair much more pompous and drawn out than it needed to be – but there was no denying that Arthur could make a rousing speech. And this was probably the first time he had admitted out loud – and in _public, _no less – that Merlin was his friend.

When Arthur announced that Emrys was no other than Merlin, the king's manservant, some of the crowd actually laughed out loud. Merlin frowned; was it really so ridiculous to assume that he had magic?

It hadn't taken long for the people to believe Arthur's words, though – especially after Merlin himself appeared to give a demonstration of his powers. Arthur then ended the gathering by declaring the ban on magic lifted before dismissing the people.

Hearing the mutterings and seeing the looks being cast his way as the crowd dispersed, Merlin knew things would never be the same again. His secret was out, and Camelot (half of it) knew who he truly was. Some were genuinely glad that magic was being welcomed once more; others scowled and predicted doom for the kingdom before the week was out if "magical scum are allowed to live freely again" – but the majority were still undecided about where they stood, simply waiting to see if Merlin really could save Camelot from the clutches of Morgan le Fay before making up their minds about whether they trusted him or not.

But it didn't matter. It really didn't matter. At the end of the day, when Merlin and Arthur trudged back to the camp – _their _camp – and rejoined the other Round Table members to plan out their course of action, it wasn't important whether the common folk of Camelot trusted him or not. Uther's ban had been in place a long time, enough to instill the fear and hatred of all things magical in many of his subjects, and Merlin knew it would take time before they could accept the change.

But he knew it would happen – gradually, as they saw magic being used for good and magic users began to crawl out of the rocks they had been living under, Camelot's citizens would learn to accept magic again, and magic itself would flourish once more, giving rise to Albion. Until then, Merlin was content in the fact that his friends knew and accepted it – accepted _him_. Until such time as Albion came to be and people no longer feared magic, he was satisfied enough.

Arthur, his king, his master, his best friend, had accepted him.


	10. The One Who Makes a Difference

**_A/N: Thank you to _**_singingintherain99, Kool Kato, JustYourAverageWhovian, Stormyskies89, Lady Dunla, Hiphuggers2, carinims01,_**_ and _**_Haley Renee_**_ for reviewing on the last chapter. Thanks also to vballqueen17, who reviewed on the last four chapters in one go._  
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**_This chapter, though shorter than the previous few, sees things heat up a wee bit - but the real action doesn't come in till tomorrow._**

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**The One Who Makes a Difference**

Morgan le Fay lounged on King Arthur's throne, clothed in a dress of intricate black lace that befitted one so full of evil and darkness as she. As she uninterestedly played with her talon-sharp fingernails, a woman entered the throne room, without announcement, without pomp, without even alerting the sorceress queen to her presence – and Morgan ceased to look quite so indifferent. She stopped playing with her nails and sat up straight, her dark eyes meeting her visitor's pure black ones.

"Derowen," she greeted, her voice sharp and intent. "What news have you?"

Derowen's true age was that of an old woman, but her body was fresh and youthful. Her face was smooth and unlined, her skin young and pink, her step light and sprightly. The only thing that gave away her true nature was her shockingly snow white hair.

Her time-defying appearance was due to the same reason Morgan le Fay allied herself with her: Derowen was a mystic. Unlike sorcerers, who all had at least some magic running through their veins, mystics were mediums who consorted with the spirits of nature for their work. As a mystic, Derowen had not an ounce of magic in her body, but because of her ability to command and direct the forces of nature, she was the ideal person to complement Morgan's own significant power.

"Arthur Pendragon hides in the woods with his loyal knights and his faithful queen," Derowen said. "My sources tell me he plans to attack at dawn."

"Let him come." Morgan sneered. "He has no chance of taking the city. He will be dead by nightfall."

"Don't be so sure, Morgan," Derowen warned. "Your parent host is with him."

Morgan's eyes narrowed. "Morgana Pendragon is a snivelling weakling," she declared scornfully. "I may be part of her, but she was never me. She was always far too soft to do what needed to be done – she was holding me back, impeding me from my work." Here Morgan snorted. "I suppose I should be thankful for that white dragon. If it weren't for her 'healing' Morgana, I would never have become my own person."

"The dragon may have forced you out of her, but it was I who gave you form," Derowen reminded her. "Thus, I know your own weaknesses even better than you do. Morgana may be without the darkest, most ruthless part of herself now, but she still possesses just as much power as you do. She will not be easily gotten rid of."

"Ah – but Derowen, you forget that I know her better than she knows herself. She didn't dare explore me too much for fear of what she would unleash, and she was unwilling to truly push the upper limits of her power for the same reason – but I have no such qualms. I have searched every inch of her, and I am not afraid to use _all _my power. That will be more than enough advantage."

Derowen shrugged. "Perhaps. But you have more pressing matters to worry about."

Morgan scowled. "Such as?"

"Emrys has resumed his place at Arthur's side – ever the faithful servant, of course."

A flash of trepidation crossed Morgan's face before she schooled it back into a smirk. "Emrys may be powerful, but he is not infallible. His blind faithfulness to his king and his inability to use dark magic will be his downfall." Morgan's tongue came out to wet her lips. "Derowen, I think it's time we set a trap."

**MERLIN**

"This is insane," Merlin hissed at Arthur as they crouched in the bushes. A mere twenty feet away, hard and imposing, stood the thick outer wall that surrounded the city of Camelot.

"I didn't see _you _coming up with a better plan, _Mer_lin," Arthur shot back. "I'll admit it might not be the smartest thing to do, but it's got the best tactical advantage."

"Tactical advantage?" Merlin repeated. "You're sneaking over the wall into the heart of the city while your knights are all preoccupied elsewhere."

"We need someone to draw attention away from us, Merlin," Arthur pointed out patiently. "While we go find Morgan le Fay, the knights and the people will keep her monstrous army busy. There are a fair number of them – they'll be fine."

"It's not the knights I'm worried about."

"I'm very flattered by your concern, Merlin, but I can take care of myself."

"It's not you, either."

Arthur stared at his friend. "Of all the silly…" He broke off and started again, "You're worried about you? With all your power and all your magic, you're worried about _you_?"

"I'm not worried about _me_," Merlin corrected. "I'm worried I won't be able to protect you. You have no one but me to watch your back this time."

Arthur looked exasperated. "I'm not totally useless, you know. I _can_, for instance, hold a sword – which is more than I can say for you."

"You're going up against _Morgan le Fay_," Merlin stressed, "who, from everything I've heard, is even more powerful than Morgana. Swords aren't going to be much help against her."

"That's why you're with me, idiot. You're the almighty Emrys who can defeat her. While I distract her, you'll finish her off. Simple. Even _you _can't botch that up." Arthur grinned.

"This is not a joke, Arthur," Merlin cried. Arthur blinked. Merlin continued, "All those other times I saved you…I had the element of surprise. I worked from the sidelines – no one ever saw me. Morgan _knows _I'm Emrys – she knows who I am and she knows what I can do. She'll be prepared for everything I throw at her."

"You'll be fine," Arthur said confidently. "You're Emrys."

"Stop calling me that!" Merlin exclaimed. "Everyone expects me to be this powerful, wise warlock with the great destiny who always knows what to do – it's not like that, Arthur. Half the time I don't even know what I'm doing. Keeping you alive all these years has not been an easy job – I've had to deal with bandits and sorcerers and immortal armies and all sorts of magical creatures – not to mention your own idiotic heroism – and there were times when I thought we wouldn't make it out, that my destiny was going to fail because I couldn't do what I had to do. It's a hard thing to be responsible for the greatest king this land will ever see, and I can't tell you the number of times I was scared I wouldn't be able to do it – because I'm powerful, but Lord knows I'm untrained – I don't know half of what I can do and more often than not I've closed my eyes and jumped and done something out of desperation and just prayed like mad that it would work…"

"Merlin," Arthur interrupted.

"…and now we're here and it's scary as hell because Morgan is like the darkest side of Morgana and everyone expects me to be able to take her down because I'm supposed to be Emrys – but I don't know if I can do it like that because I've never done anything like this before and if I fail it'll spell disaster for Camelot, for Albion, for _you_…"

"Merlin!"

Merlin finally stopped rambling and gazed at Arthur.

"First, take a breath," Arthur advised. "One more…good. Now listen…" He placed a hand on Merlin's shoulder. "I know you're scared, Merlin, but so are we all. But we'll get through this. It's not like we haven't done it before."

"But –" Merlin started to protest; Arthur cut him off.

"The only difference this time is that you don't have to hide," the king said. "You don't have to pretend anymore. And I know you're worried you won't be able to do it; it's a great responsibility to be the one to protect the king – but you said it yourself, you've been doing it for years. So you can do this. I trust you. And there's no one else I'd rather have watching my back." The last was said with such faith, such conviction in his blue eyes that Merlin had no choice but to believe him.

Feeling much readier, Merlin squared his shoulders and nodded. "Okay," he said, his voice brimming with newfound confidence and strength. "Let's do this."

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_**A/N: Hopefully that satisfies your curiosity about where Morgan le Fay came from. In my mind, Morgana changed so drastically between Seasons 2 and 3 that there had to have been at least a little enchantment and brainwashing involved. Of course, she always had the potential to do evil, but her Morgan le Fay persona was encouraged and empowered by Morgause's influence. Aithusa rid her of it by healing her in Season 4. That's just my imagination, though XD**_


	11. The Death of a King

**_A/N: So, from lots of reviews, we are back down to five reviewers today - which is perfectly fine by me, because what they lack in quantity, they make up for in loyalty. Thank you _**_Haley Renee, carinims01, Lady Dunla, Kool Kato,_**_ and _**_CarolinaEirasSa_**_! Thanks also to those who have favourited and/or subscribed since I last thanked the people who did these things._  
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**_Today's chapter is...well, let's just say it's rather shocking (evil grin)._**

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**The Death of a King**

A terrific clash rang out across the open courtyard – the very walls of Camelot's capitol seemed to shake with the echoes of the great battle that Arthur was currently engaged in with a four-armed beast that was surprisingly proficient at swordfighting. Another deafening clang reverberated as Arthur, yet again, deflected a blow from one of his opponent's four swords.

_Come on, Merlin, where the hell are you? _the young king wondered, scanning the courtyard for any sign of his servant. A group of serkets had surrounded Gwaine and Percival, and Arthur had sent Merlin to help them – but he should be back by now, shouldn't he?

A lunge from his enemy pulled his attention back to the duel.

Things could not have gone more wrong. The strategy they had carefully set in place had simply fallen apart the moment Merlin lifted himself and Arthur over the east wall of the city only to find a squadron of Sidhe (how Morgan le Fay had got _Sidhe _to work with her when they regarded mortals with such disdain was a mystery) waiting for them. It was as if Morgan le Fay had known they were coming. They had not been able to sneak into the castle, as planned – they had had to flee to the courtyard instead, where the knights and townsfolk who volunteered to fight were battling the rest of Morgan's demonic army. Arthur and Merlin had ended up fighting alongside everybody else, unable to slip away to find Morgan.

A swipe from the four-armed creature sent Arthur spiralling to the ground. Excalibur was still clutched in his hand, but a clever knock from his opponent rectified that. Arthur found himself staring into the red eyes of his foe as the latter raised its four swords, prepared to finish him off.

Out of nowhere, a fireball shot towards the creature, disarming it of all its weapons. Another, bigger fireball finished the job, disintegrating the beast into dust. Arthur glanced up to find Merlin standing ten feet away, his eyes fading back to blue.

"Cutting it kind of close there, aren't you, Merlin?" Arthur said as he retrieved his sword and sank it into a goblin.

"Well _excuse me _for making sure all your knights stay alive," Merlin retorted, flinging energy beams left and right. "So much for the plan."

"Shut up, Merlin." Arthur parried a strike and twirled Excalibur around before dealing the death blow to one of his opponents. He squinted at the castle. "We have to find a way in somehow. None of this is going to stop unless we defeat Morgan."

Just then a troll pounced on Merlin, trapping him in its crushing arms. Merlin struggled, his eyes flashing gold as he attempted to throw the troll off with magic – but the creature's impenetrable skin protected it. Arthur interceded by slicing the troll open.

"I have an idea," he said as Merlin scrambled back to his feet.

"I hope it involves killing every disgusting creature here."

"When we were separated, I kept trying to find a way into the castle. I noticed that they didn't bother me as much as they did when we were together." As if to prove his point, the Bastet swooped down from the sky. Arthur and Merlin were forced to flatten themselves against the ground to avoid its swiping claws before it flew away again. "I rest my case."

"So what – you want to go find Morgan le Fay _alone_?" Merlin asked incredulously.

"No, idiot – you and I will take separate paths in alone, then we'll meet up at the throne room."

"Arthur, that's crazy!" Merlin exclaimed. "There's no guarantee either of us won't be delayed…and Morgan is too dangerous for you to face alone."

"Do you have a better idea?" Arthur demanded. Merlin bit his lip.

"No."

Arthur nodded curtly. "I'll see you inside, then." As he and Merlin began to separate, he added, "And Merlin? Don't be late."

**MERLIN**

The distinctive clink of a sword was Elyan's only clue. He immediately ran to the source of the sound to find Gwen attempting to sneak off with the weapon.

"Gwen!"

Gwen cringed and unwillingly turned around to face her brother. She, Morgana, and Gaius had been left behind at the campsite with Elyan to guard them – but Queen Guinevere was never one to sit on the sidelines while Arthur put himself in danger for his people.

"Elyan, please, let me go," she pleaded.

"You know I can't, Gwen," Elyan said. "Arthur made me promise on my life to keep you safe."

"Arthur should know better than to make people make promises they can't keep," Gwen retorted. "I'm not going to sit here and not help, Elyan. Arthur needs me."

"Gwen, don't…"

"Elyan," his sister said firmly. "You are not going to stop me."

Elyan sighed as he walked over to embrace her. "I know," he murmured. "Be careful, Gwen."

Gwen nodded once before slipping away. Elyan watched her go with queer expression on his face – it was a mixture of pride, worry, and wryness.

"You were right, Gaius," he said.

"I know," the physician replied, coming out of his tent. "Gwen is not a normal queen – she is not used to doing nothing while others take the risks." He placed a fatherly hand on Elyan's shoulder. "She'll be fine, Elyan."

**MERLIN**

"As predicted, Arthur and Emrys have separated," Derowen reported.

"Excellent." Morgan smiled. "Together they're unstoppable, but alone…especially Arthur, defenceless as he is – it hardly seems fair." She clucked her tongue. "Make sure his way here is clear – but not _too _clear; we don't want him getting suspicious."

Derowen nodded. "And Emrys?"

"Throw everything we've got at him," came the reply. "Emrys is powerful, but even he will be slowed down if a crowd of dark creatures takes every opportunity to attack him. We need to keep him busy until Arthur gets here."

**MERLIN**

Arthur found that as he made his way across the courtyard alone, he was attacked by only a few magical creatures, all of whom he dispatched easily. He felt somewhat smugly satisfied that he had been right about their not bothering him when he wasn't with Merlin.

_The idiot really is a magnet for trouble. Now I know who's _really _to blame for all the bad luck we've had with magic since he appeared. _The thought was supposed to be light-hearted, but it sobered him. No doubt Merlin was having a harder time than he was – he was probably the one attracting the majority of monsters. _Merlin, so help me, if you get yourself killed, I swear I will never let you rest in peace._

Breathing deeply, Arthur pushed aside this thought as his feet traced the familiar path to the throne room – _his _throne room, which he needed to take back from Morgan le Fay. He paused just outside the doors, waiting for Merlin to appear. _Typical. When has he ever been on time? Come on, Merlin – I'm not going in without you. _

Unfortunately, the choice was taken out of his hands when the doors suddenly flew open and he felt himself being dragged in against his will.

"Hello again, Arthur Pendragon," Morgan greeted; Arthur's blood boiled at seeing her sprawled on _his _throne. "Welcome to your doom."

**MERLIN**

Merlin blasted a six-legged creature away and all but leaped the final few paces to the castle corridor. Then he took off running as fast as he could in the direction of the throne room, trying to ignore the bad feeling in his stomach. Something inside him was telling him that something was very, very wrong.

As he approached the throne room, to his immense surprise, he happened across a familiar figure racing for the same destination from an opposite direction.

"Gwen?" he exclaimed, skidding to a stop.

"Merlin!" she gasped. "Thank God! I haven't been able to find Arthur _anywhere_ – I assumed he must already be dealing with Morgan le Fay…but Merlin…" Her caramel eyes grew wide with anxiety. "Why are you out here when he's in there?"

"We got…separated," Merlin murmured vaguely, distracted by the wide open door to the throne room that had suddenly caught his eye. _That's odd. There's no reason for that door to be open, unless…_Without warning, he grabbed Gwen and pulled her behind a pillar.

"Merlin!" she squeaked.

"Shh!" he hushed her. "Listen, Arthur's in there with Morgan le Fay. I have to go help him. _You _have to stay here."

"No."

Merlin groaned. "Gwen, please…Arthur will kill me if I let anything happen to you – and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself either."

"I said no," Gwen repeated. "I'm the Queen of Camelot, Merlin, and until Arthur officially declares you Court Sorcerer, I still outrank you. So I'm ordering you to let me come with you."

Merlin sighed. "Fine. But be careful."

"You too."

They crept out from behind the pillar and cautiously ventured into the throne room.

"It's about time," Morgan le Fay's chilling voice greeted them. "Arthur and I were getting lonely – weren't we, Arthur?"

Both Merlin's and Gwen's eyes were drawn to where Arthur was standing, apparently magically frozen into place. But what was much more horrifying was the sword that dangled from mid-air above him, which Merlin recognised immediately as Excalibur. _Oh, no._

"So, Emrys," Morgan said. "We meet at last. How do you like my little trap?"

It amazed Gwen how very like Morgana she was, and yet at the same time, how she was also so very _un_like her. Morgana, even at the height of her evil deeds, had always had a type of uncertainty, a guard of a sort, in her eyes. It was as if she reserved part of herself from what she was doing.

Morgan le Fay had no such qualms. Her eyes were open, bold, glittering with pure malice; it was plain to see that she revelled in taunting Camelot's finest.

"Let him go, Morgan," Merlin said, in a deadly quiet voice Gwen had never heard him use before. This was a new side of Merlin that she had only just begun to see.

"Oh, but you don't even understand _how _my trap works!" Morgan tittered gleefully. "Allow me to explain it to you. In about three minutes, that sword is going to fall straight into Arthur's body. It will pierce his heart, allow his blood escape, leave no room for miracles. In short, it will kill him instantly upon impact. And Arthur won't be able to run from it because – well, he's quite literally frozen at the moment."

"I don't care how it works – let him go!"

Morgan wasn't fazed. "You really might want to listen to this. You see, Emrys – I designed this enchantment to be unbreakable. You can't change it, you can't erase it, you can't slow it down – you can't do anything to ensure Arthur survives."

Merlin's eyes flared gold for the briefest instant, as if to test the truth of her words. Morgan let out a peal of delighted laughter.

"I told you so," she said smugly. "Oh, don't look so horrified, Emrys – I'm not quite the heartless witch you think me to be. There _is _one way you can save Arthur."

A tense silence filled the room before Morgan spoke again. "If you take Arthur's place as the victim, Arthur himself will walk free, completely unharmed. Of course, you'll die – but Arthur will live. Does that not count for something?" She smiled wickedly.

If Merlin wasn't certain before about Arthur being immobilized, he was now – because Merlin knew without a doubt that if Arthur had use of his facilities right now, he would be screaming at him to not be an idiot and get the hell out of there instead of volunteering to die in his place like some stupidly noble dummy. As it was, Arthur's blue eyes had widened into something akin to extreme horror.

But Merlin also knew that if he _didn't _do this, Arthur would die – Morgan hadn't been lying when she said there was no way to break the enchantment – at least, not in the minute or so he had at his disposal. Given time, he was sure that, with his powers, he could have found a way out – but time was something they simply did not have.

"If I do this," Merlin said, "if I trade my life for Arthur's, you'll just kill him after you kill me."

"Correction: after _Excalibur _kills you." Morgan clasped her fingers together. "And yes, you're probably right about that – but there won't exactly be anything you can do about it then, will there? Since you'll be dead."

Merlin glared at her with pure hatred so forceful Gwen had to wonder if this was the same sweet serving boy who had become her friend.

Morgan leaned forward on Arthur's throne as if conferring some great secret. "But…you _can _do something about _this _assassination attempt. It _is _your job to protect Arthur, after all." She settled back again, a supreme smirk on her face. "The clock is ticking, young warlock."

Merlin was about to reply when a sudden great chime sounded. To Merlin, it signalled the end of the world. He and Gwen watched in absolute horror as Excalibur abruptly stopped floating – as if the invisible strings that had been holding it up had suddenly been cut – and plunged straight down into Arthur's chest.

"Arthur!" Gwen screamed, as her husband collapsed to the floor in a pool of his own blood.

Morgan cackled madly. "I guess I forgot to mention _one _part of my plan to you. I never intended for you to _save_ Arthur. I wanted to tell you you _could_, and then watch as you failed to do so. I have broken your spirit, Emrys, your reason for being. It is the ultimate victory."

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_**A/N: Oh no! The Once and Future King is dead! Now what's gonna happen to Albion?**_


	12. The Gates of Avalon

**_A/N: After yesterday's shocker, I received fourteen reviews from _**_carinims01, CarolinaEirasSa, Haley Renee, Galaya, H27Mills, Special Agent Llewellyn, Stormyskies89, rmatri540, Melgaye, Paul, vballqueen17, Alaia Skyhawk, StrangelyPenned_**_ (whose review I adored because it provided critique points as well as praise), and _**_ReadingRaven019_**_. Thank you to all the above, as well as to whomever put this story on favourites/alerts - and we shall now delve into Chapter 12._**

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**The Gates of Avalon**

Merlin stood still, unable to move for a moment, his eyes transfixed on the horrible view of Gwen clinging to Arthur's bleeding, dead body. Indescribable grief washed over him for a second before pure, unadulterated rage took over.

"Gwen," he managed in a barely controlled voice. "Get out."

"Merlin?" she whispered uncertainly.

"Go, Gwen!" he ordered. "I promised Arthur I would look after you if anything happened to him. Don't argue, just leave – now!"

With one last pain-filled look at Arthur, Gwen ran from the room.

"Smart girl," Morgan remarked. As Merlin began to advance on her, his eyes already glowing gold, she held up a hand. "Before you come any closer, Emrys, there is someone I want you to meet." She snapped her fingers and a snowy-haired woman stepped out from the shadows. "This is Derowen. She has helped me through every step of my way. And she is a powerful mystic in her own right. Your magic may be strong, Emrys – but even you cannot defeat both of us."

Merlin let loose his frustration, anger, and sadness in a burning shout that echoed off the walls before he disappeared in a swirl of gold mist. There was probably not a man, woman, or child in or around Camelot who did not hear his cry.

Morgan barely looked surprised. "Well, that was much easier than I expected it to be. Who knew Emrys would turn out to be such a coward?"

Derowen merely grunted.

**MERLIN**

Morgana startled when Gwen crashed back into the clearing where they had made camp, out of breath and sobbing and not giving a damn about the way Gaius was staring at her or how Elyan was lowering his sword after picking it up automatically at the noise.

"Gwen, what is it?" Gaius inquired in concern.

Gwen collapsed on the ground in a heap, still shaking with the force of her sobs. "She killed him," she managed through hitching breaths. "He's dead, she killed him…"

"Gwen, you're not making sense." Gaius attempted to help her off the ground, but the queen was having none of that.

"She killed him!" she shouted.

"Gwen." Morgana's voice was firm, yet gentle – like the mistress she had been in days gone by – as she dropped down beside her once-friend. "It's all right."

"No, it's not," Gwen sobbed. "Arthur's _dead_, Morgana – _nothing_'s all right."

Gaius inhaled sharply. Elyan hissed. Morgana felt something freeze inside her.

"Arthur…died?" she said numbly, too shocked to form anything more coherent.

"How?" Elyan demanded.

"Morgan le Fay…she tricked him, used his own sword against him…" Gwen broke down into fresh tears.

"Where's Merlin?" Gaius asked urgently.

"I…I think he's fighting her now."

Still moving like she was in a dream, Morgana got to her feet.

She may have done many things to him, tried to kill Arthur Pendragon more times than she could count – but he was still her brother, and no one got to kill him except her.

Morgan le Fay was going to pay.

**MERLIN**

When Kilgharrah landed, it was to find a very despondent young warlock waiting for him several miles from where Arthur's knights were fighting for Camelot.

"Merlin?" the dragon questioned. "You summoned me?"

Merlin sniffed, and as he looked up, Kilgharrah noted that his eyes were red from crying.

"Arthur's dead." The warlock's voice was dull and lifeless. "Morgan le Fay killed him with his own sword."

And at once, Kilgharrah understood. "I'm sorry, Merlin."

A flash of anger crossed Merlin's eyes. "No, no, no – you don't get to say 'I'm sorry'. You don't get to apologise and then move on with Destiny's grand plan. You told me that it was Arthur's destiny to bring magic back to Camelot, and that it was _my_ destiny to protect Arthur. I can't fail that."

"Merlin, destiny is a very strange thing," Kilgharrah said carefully. "Perhaps Arthur doesn't need to be alive to bring magic back. Perhaps it's enough that he knew who you are."

"No," Merlin refused. "No, I don't accept that. Arthur has to live to bring magic back. Tell me how I can bring him back."

"Excalibur was burnished with my own magic," Kilgharrah reminded him. "It is a weapon capable of killing even the undead. If Arthur has died on its blade, I'm afraid there is nothing you can do, even with your great power."

"Don't give me that," Merlin cried. "There has to be _something_ I can do to bring him back. He can't be _gone_. Please!"

Kilgharrah sighed, his warm breath blowing the grasses. "Very well," he acquiesced. "There is one way – but it would require an extremely heavy price," he warned.

"Tell me."

**MERLIN**

"Morgana, please, think of what you're doing!" Gaius exclaimed as he, Gwen, and Elyan all tried to hold Morgana back from marching to Camelot and unleashing her fury on her evil double. "Morgan le Fay is extremely powerful, and she has a mystic as her ally. You cannot face them alone."

"I won't _be _alone!" Morgana said, trying to get free. "Merlin will be there – he'll help me obliterate that witch. Let me go before I make you."

"Morgana, don't do this," Gwen begged, pulling on her former mistress' arm. "Please!"

"Morgana, that's enough," Merlin's quiet voice commanded as he suddenly appeared in the clearing, making them all jump in shock.

"Merlin!" Gwen gasped. "Where did you come from?"

"Going back there won't bring Arthur back," Merlin said, still addressing Morgana. "But I know something that might, and I need your help to do it."

Exclamations of surprise came from everyone.

"Are you serious?" Elyan asked.

"_Can _you do that?" Gwen inquired, an impossible hope shining in her eyes.

Only Gaius remained silent, but his quirked eyebrow and concerned gaze said all that needed saying.

Morgana sighed in defeat and stopped struggling. "What do you need me to do?"

"I need to take you somewhere first. Don't panic." And so saying, Merlin grasped her by the arm and transported both of them from the spot.

**MERLIN**

In the courtyard of Camelot, the battle raged on. Morgan watched the war unfold from her position on the balcony. Her magical army had been significantly reduced, but there were still enough of them to give the knights of Camelot a difficult time. Surprisingly, though, none of them had died yet – probably Emrys' doing. Then again, her minions hadn't really been concentrating on them – she'd ordered them to focus on the King and his sorcerer. Now that both were out of the way…

"Don't get overconfident, Morgan," Derowen warned from beside her. "Emrys may have disappeared, but that only makes him more dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Morgan scoffed. "He ran from us, Derowen – ran away like a terrified child."

"Did he?" Derowen asked archly. "He knew he couldn't fight both of us, so he made a strategic withdrawal. Mark my words, Morgan – he's out there somewhere, making some sort of plan to even the odds. He'll be back."

Morgan scowled. "Can't you at least let me enjoy the feeling of having bested the so-called greatest warlock in the land?"

"Plenty of time to sit on your laurels later. You have yet to secure your full victory. I suggest you get to it – and keep a sharp eye out for whatever Emrys is doing."

Morgan sighed. "Very well," she acknowledged. Coolly, she glanced back at the carnage below. "Kill them all."

**MERLIN**

Merlin took Morgana to a peaceful glen in the forest, just beside a beautiful lake that glittered like crystal in the sunlight. Beyond the sparkling waters rose two snow-capped mountains, their twin peaks reaching high into the azure of the sky. In this serene place, it was hard to believe that there was a bloody war raging in Camelot at that very moment.

However, Morgana barely spared a thought on the sheer beauty around her.

"You want me to do _what_?" she demanded after Merlin told her his plan.

"It's not about what I _want_, Morgana – I _need _you to do this for me."

"No," she declared. "Absolutely not."

Merlin sighed. "Morgana…"

"Merlin," she returned in the same tone. "I am _not _going to do this. It's the most ridiculously insane idea I've ever heard."

"It's our only chance to bring back Arthur," Merlin insisted.

"How in the _world _is _killing _you going to bring back Arthur?"

"It's the law of magic, Morgana. To create a life, a life must be given. Nimueh used magic to conceive Arthur, but in return, Arthur's mother had to die. Arthur survived the bite from the Questing Beast because of a mess of trading lives that resulted in Nimueh's death. The Veil that let the Dorocha in required –"

"No!" Morgana interrupted as comprehension dawned. "_Merlin_! You're trading your life for Arthur's!"

"In a way, yes – but it's a bit more complicated," Merlin admitted. "Because Arthur was killed by Excalibur – which is a magical weapon – I have to enter Avalon itself to make the trade. And no living soul can ever enter Avalon."

"I don't know what Avalon is and I don't care," said Morgana. "I'm not killing you."

"You _have _to, Morgana," Merlin said earnestly. "It's why I brought you here, to the gates of Avalon." He gestured at the lake. Morgana looked helplessly at it.

"But I _can't _kill you, Merlin!" she exclaimed. "I have no weapon with me."

"That's a weak excuse, Morgana, and you know it. You and I don't need swords to hack at each other. If we want someone dead, all we have to do is say the word."

"Merlin…" she said desperately, "Do you have any idea what this will do to me? After I've come all this way, do you know what will happen? No one in Camelot will _ever _trust me again if I kill their only hope. They'll certainly never believe that you _asked _me to do it. And don't even get me started about the druids."

"It will work out somehow, Morgana," he assured her. "I promise."

"Forget that, then. Do you have any idea what this will do to me as your _friend_? Merlin, you're the best friend I've ever had – you helped me when I was terrified of my magic, you comforted me when I was scared, you spared my life time and time again even when I wouldn't have hesitated to kill you, and you gave me my second chance. How do you think I would feel knowing I'd killed the only person who was willing to be my friend after everything I've done?"

Merlin's eyes were pained. "Morgana, Arthur's more important. He is the King – I'm just a servant…"

"A servant who's the most powerful warlock in the world, _and _Arthur's best friend – don't give me that look, you know it's true," Morgana corrected.

"Regardless, I am a servant," Merlin said firmly. "I'm not essential. When Arthur comes back, you can take my place as the sorcerer, and with help from Gaius and the knights, you can defeat Morgan le Fay together. But Camelot _needs _its king. Albion needs Arthur. Morgana, please – I'm asking you, as your friend, to do me this one big favour. Kill me, so Arthur can come back."

Tears collected in Morgana's eyes, against her will, as she realised the truth of his words. She threw her arms around Merlin and hugged him tightly, giving him her silent agreement. Mentally apologising to everyone who knew Merlin and pleading that they would understand, she whispered, "_Forðferan._" Her eyes flashed burning gold, and an instant later, Merlin went limp in her arms.

Crying softly to herself, Morgana gently laid her friend on the ground. As she peered at the lake through her tears, she reflected that Merlin couldn't have chosen a more beautiful place to die.

The thought did nothing to ease her pain or her guilt. She had just killed a friend – and worse, she had killed someone very dear to practically everyone in Camelot, and extremely important to the destiny of Albion.

She, Morgana Pendragon, had murdered the great warlock Merlin Emrys. And no matter what anyone else said or thought, she would never be able to forgive herself for it.


	13. The Way It Must Be

**_A/N: Thank you so much to my thirteen reviewers _**_Haley Renee, carinims01, ReadingRaven019, Stormyskies89, Galaya, sweety2010, merlinismylife, rmatri540, StrangelyPenned, Melgaye, Anonymous, flyaway213,_**_ and _**_CarolinaEirasSa_**_!_  
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**_Now, before we enter the mysterious world of Avalon (and meet up with two familiar faces), there are a few things I would like to clear up. A few of you have noted that Morgana has suddenly gone straight back to being good, and thus is a little OOC because of the speed of her repentance - but keep in mind that in this fic, everything that was evil and bad in Morgana was all due to Morgan le Fay, who, once out, can no longer keep Morgana evil. Simply put, when Aithusa forced Morgan le Fay out, Morgana's personality reverted back to the way it was in Season 1. Also, about the Great Dragon not reacting worse than he did to Arthur's death - Kilgharrah has mellowed quite a bit over the course of the seasons, and he just recently discovered that he's been reading the prophecies wrong (Chapter 1). Thus, he's more open-minded now and trusts that Destiny knows what it's doing.  
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**_On to Avalon, then!_**

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**The Way It Must Be**

Merlin opened his eyes to find a familiar face staring at him in a queer mixture of concern, sadness, and joy. A paradox if there ever was one.

"Merlin," said Lancelot quietly, "what happened?"

Merlin pulled himself upright to observe his surroundings. He was still by a lake – but although this lake looked almost exactly the same as the one he'd just seen, it was subtly different. It was brighter, for one, unfathomable and more peaceful. In fact, the entire area seemed like that – Merlin could literally _feel _the deep magic that permeated every element of the new world he was in. He looked back at Lancelot's concerned face and decided to keep it short.

"I died," he said curtly.

Lancelot closed his eyes as a heaviness of emotion settled on him. "God, I was hoping…" He bit his lip and sighed. "It was bad enough when Arthur arrived, but you…"

"You've seen Arthur?" Merlin said eagerly. Lancelot frowned.

"Yes, he got here just a while before you. What's happening back in the real world?"

"Tell you later." Merlin sprang to his feet. "I need to find Arthur."

Lancelot shook his head. "You'll have plenty of time to talk to him later, Merlin. Unfortunately," he added under his breath; this was something he had never wanted to see. Arthur and Merlin, both dead, at their young age? Something terrible must have happened. And what of Gwen? Lancelot's chest tightened at the thought of how the sweet maid must be suffering over the loss of two of the most important men in her life.

"I need to talk to Arthur _now_," Merlin insisted.

"You'll have to wait, Merlin; he's meeting with the Lady of the Lake right now – something you'll have to do as well; no one enters Avalon without her approval."

To the knight's complete bafflement, Merlin smiled softly. "That's okay," he said. "I'm a close friend of the Lady."

**MERLIN**

Morgana was pelted with questions the minute she set foot back in camp.

"What happened?" demanded Gaius.

"Where did he take you?" Elyan asked.

"Did you manage to bring Arthur back?" Gwen, of course.

But it was Gaius, again, who asked the most damning question of all. His sharp eyes noticed at once that Merlin was not with her, and he immediately inquired after the whereabouts of his ward. Morgana had to force herself to look him in the eyes as she gave her answer.

"He's gone, Gaius."

The absolute certainty and grief in her tone was enough to clue the others in.

"No!" Gwen cried, shouting her denial.

"Gwen…" Morgana began.

"No!" the heartbroken queen wailed again. "Not Merlin too!"

"I'm sorry, Gwen, I'm so sorry," Morgana apologised as tears trailed down her face. "I am so, very sorry," she repeated, expanding her address to include Gaius and Elyan as well. "He told me it was necessary to bring Arthur back – he said he had to die for Arthur to live." She took a breath. "He asked me to kill him."

"And you _listened_?" Elyan said incredulously. A moment later, his sword was at Morgana's throat.

"I had no choice, Elyan!" Morgana defended herself. "It was the only way to resurrect Arthur – Merlin made me do it for Camelot."

"And where is Arthur now?" Elyan demanded. "Is he even alive?"

"I…I don't know…Merlin said he had to go to Avalon to make the trade, because of the way Arthur died, I think…"

"And _I _think that you are simply making this all up," Elyan said, pressing his blade harder against her. "You didn't really reform, did you, Morgana? You gained Arthur's trust, and Merlin's too…you fooled all of us – again. And then you betrayed us – again." His voice dropped into a dangerous tone. "You have done your last, Morgana."

He raised the sword and prepared to strike. But before he could kill Morgana, a deafening roar reverberated over the entire forest. The four people in the clearing froze as an enormous dragon, its bronze scales tinted with red, landed heavily on the ground near them.

"The Great Dragon," Gaius breathed.

"Morgana Pendragon!" Kilgharrah thundered. "Stand before me!"

A thorough and utter silence encompassed the clearing before Morgana gathered the courage to walk towards the Great Dragon. For his part, Kilgharrah stared down at her through golden eyes, as if trying to discern her very soul.

"It is done, then?" he asked with a hint of sorrow in his voice.

Morgana nodded. "It is."

The Great Dragon sighed heavily before turning to Elyan, who was wide-eyed. "Put down your sword, Knight of Camelot. The sorceress has done nothing wrong."

"She killed Merlin," Elyan said, though a bit uncertainly.

"She only did so because Merlin himself told her to do it. The laws of magic state that to create a life, a life must be taken. Merlin has fulfilled his destiny by giving his life to save Arthur's."

"So…Arthur is alive, then?" Gwen ventured hesitantly. Kilgharrah turned sympathetic eyes on her.

"Not yet," he said. "But have faith. The Once and Future King will return. Until then…" Here he turned back to Morgana. "The remaining Pendragon must continue the battle. Fight with Camelot, Morgana. Fight on the side of that which is destined to be."

"I can't," Morgana gasped. "The people don't trust me. I'm better help staying here."

"You are better help putting your magic to good use," Kilgharrah informed her. "Morgan le Fay and her mystic of an ally must die."

"But Merlin's the only one who can kill Morgan," Gwen protested.

"Indeed," Kilgharrah agreed. "But Morgana can eliminate the mystic for him."

Morgana blinked at the dragon's words. "Wait…" she said slowly. "The way you're speaking – it's as if…Merlin is going to come back?"

Kilgharrah smiled knowingly. "Nothing can keep apart the Once and Future King and his protector – not even death. Merlin has just proven that by following his master to Avalon. If Arthur returns, Merlin will return with him. There is no other way. So, Morgana Pendragon…" Kilgharrah's burning gaze bore into her. "Kill the mystic, and pave the way for Morgan le Fay's final defeat at the hands of Emrys."

**MERLIN**

The Hall of the Lady of the Lake was a simple structure situated several miles away from the lake itself. It was a delicate gazebo-like building with slender columns supporting the slightly domed roof. As open to the air as it was, there was a sense of shelter to it, an impression it gave that told everyone it was not to be messed with.

At one end of the Hall was a throne-like chair; on it sat the Lady of the Lake. Merlin's heart jumped a little. Freya looked more beautiful than he remembered. She was resplendent in a gown of deep red, her pale skin contrasting gorgeously with her long ebony hair. She was currently deep in conversation with another familiar figure – Arthur's blond head was facing away from him, but there was no mistaking his King.

Next to Merlin, Lancelot cleared his throat a little awkwardly. "My Lady, you have a visitor."

Both Freya and Arthur glanced up at the knight's words. Freya's beautiful face lighted up with pure joy, while Arthur's features twisted in a combination of horror and exasperation.

"Merlin!" Freya cried happily, descending quickly from her throne to catch him in a warm embrace. She stepped back somewhat sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't be happy that you're dead – but I am so, so glad to see you."

Merlin smiled gently at her. "I know." Stroking her cheek, he added softly, "I'm glad to see you too."

"Merlin, what are you _doing _here?" Arthur demanded, pushing his way through. "I thought I explicitly told you not to die."

"No, you didn't," Merlin corrected. "You told me not to be late."

"For the fight against Morgan le Fay!" Arthur cried in exasperation. "_Not _to follow me into death! It's the one event I'd rather you were very, very late for."

"Arthur, I died for you," Merlin said seriously.

"Did I ever _ask _you to?" Arthur demanded. "No! But you, the noble idiot, you just _had _to get yourself killed – and where does that leave Camelot, I ask you? Without her King and her Sorcerer, how can she possibly –"

"No, Arthur, you don't understand," Merlin interrupted. "I died _for _you. I asked Morgana to kill me so I could come to Avalon and trade places with you. Arthur, you need to go back. I'm here to take your place in death."

Arthur stared speechlessly at him for a moment. Then, abruptly, he started ranting furiously again. "Of all the utterly dumb, idiotic, _stupid _things to do, you _kill yourself for me_?"

"It's what I'm supposed to do, Arthur…"

"No, you don't get to _die _for me! I forbid it! As your King and master, I absolutely, positively prohibit you from _taking my place in death_!"

"Arthur," Freya interjected opportunely, in a tone that was both gentle yet commanding. "Merlin's right – Albion needs the Once and Future King. You have to go back."

"Not without Merlin," Arthur stubbornly insisted.

"You have to, Arthur, it's the law of magic – to save a life, a life must be –"

"To _hell _with the law of magic!" Arthur exclaimed, cutting Merlin off. "I am _not _going back without you."

"We can't _both _stay here," Merlin pointed out reasonably. "Camelot needs at least one of us to defeat Morgan le Fay."

"Exactly," Arthur agreed. "Which is why _I_ will stay here, where I'm supposed to be, while _you_ reverse your 'death'."

Merlin was starting to get seriously exasperated. Arthur could be incredibly pig-headed at times. "You _still _don't get it, Arthur. Camelot – and Albion – can do without me – but she needs _you_. You're her King."

"No, Merlin, _you _don't get it," Arthur countered. "Camelot may need _me_, but _I_ need _you_. You're my best friend, and I can't be a king without you. I couldn't bear it if I went back and lived while you stayed here, trapped in death."

Merlin blinked, touched to the quick by Arthur's honest, straightforward words. They'd been dancing around the subject of their unconventional friendship for years, telling each other just how much they cared before covering up with a joke or passing it off as sarcasm – but deep down, they both knew that they meant it. Here, in Avalon, where all pretences were swept away, the real, whole, undisguised truth was allowed to escape unrestrained by the shackles of earthly customs and human rules.

"Arthur," Merlin said seriously, "I love you like a brother, and I'm sorry it has to be this way. If I could, I'd stay by your side until we're both old and grey. I'd stay until you and Gwen have ten grandchildren and you've gone doddery in your old age. I'd stay until you repeal the ban against magic and make me Court Sorcerer and stuff me into a ridiculous hat or whatever it is you're planning on doing. I'd stay until I actually am eighty years old with a long white beard and bones that creak and muscles that ache. I'd stay until Albion has prospered for a hundred years. I'd stay until you breathed your last and left the mortal world, and then I'd follow you back to Avalon. But since I can't, you need to go back and do all those things for me, and I'll watch you from here. But know that I was happy to be your servant until the day I died."

Arthur blinked rapidly to dispel the…moisture…in his eyes – he refused to admit they were _tears_ – and gripped Merlin's shoulders tightly. "Merlin…" he began.

Merlin placed his hands on Arthur's. "Arthur," he said, sparkling liquid glistening in his own eyes (but unlike Arthur, he made no attempt to hide it). "This is the way it has to be."

"Now whoever said that?" Freya inquired gaily.

For the first time since entering Avalon, a flash of confusion crossed Merlin's face. "But I thought…"

"You thought right," Freya agreed. "To save a life, a life must be given. But whoever said it had to be _your _life, or that the same rule doesn't apply to you?" At Merlin's blank expression, she elaborated, "Arthur's right too, Merlin. Camelot – _Albion _– needs _both _of you. The Once and Future King cannot be without his Warlock, and the Warlock cannot be without his King. You are two sides of the same coin – neither can exist without the other. Haven't you already learned that from the Great Dragon?"

"I am _not _letting someone else trade their life for mine," Merlin said vehemently.

"Not even Morgan le Fay?"

Merlin sucked in a breath; Arthur simultaneously grinned and grimaced, however impossible that may be.

"Morgan le Fay?" Merlin repeated uncertainly. Freya nodded.

"As the Lady of the Lake and the Guardian of Avalon, I can suspend the required life payment for a certain amount of time, Merlin," she reminded him. "You should know that – you've dealt with this sort of thing before. I can return you both to life for up to twenty-four hours. If you succeed in killing Morgan le Fay within that time, her life will satisfy the debt, and you both will live."

Arthur nodded, satisfied and glad; Merlin, however, looked torn.

"Freya…" he began softly. The Lady of the Lake smiled gently and took his face in her hands.

"It is not yet your time, my love," she told him softly. "One day, it will be, and on that day I will welcome you joyously – but today is not that day. You have to live – you have to do everything you said you would, and stay by Arthur's side until you both end your time in the other world. You have to see the beginning of Albion and the return of magic, and continue protecting the Once and Future King as he fulfills his destiny. Because that is _your _destiny, Merlin, and you cannot escape that." Her expression turned wry. "Fate will not allow it."

She tenderly caressed his raven hair and kissed him sweetly on the lips. Then she extended her hand to Arthur, who took it and came to stand beside her and Merlin – right in the middle of the pavilion.

"Go now, and fulfil your destinies," she bade them, waving one white arm over both their figures. Her eyes glowed gold as she chanted the words of the spell – words of such power and deep magic that even Merlin had never tried them. This was a different sort of magic – this was the magic of life and death, over which he had power only to mirror, not control. This was the ultimate authority given only completely to the Guardian of Avalon, the Lady of the Lake. As Freya finished reciting the last part of the spell, Merlin could already feel the magic taking effect.

"Goodbye for now, Merlin, Arthur," Freya wished them. "We will see each other again."

Arthur grinned wryly. "I hope you don't mind if I take my own sweet time to visit again."

Freya's bell-like peal of laughter was the last thing they heard before the cool black darkness clouded their senses and whisked them away.


	14. The Seeress' Redemption

**_A/N: Thank you to all those who favourited or scubscribed to this story, and double thank you to those who reviewed - _**_carinims01, lordstarlight, merlinismylife, LadyDunla, rmatri540, Neonlights, Josh4eva3, Galaya, Epsilon Scorpii, sweety2010, KlaineDrarryMerthur, writergirl142, Hiphuggers2, Melgaye, ColorLikeWhoa, StrangelyPenned, ReadingRaven019, and Haley Renee_**_ - most of you are quite familiar to me by now, but a few are new - but I appreciate you all._  
**

**_I have a feeling some of you will be rather upset with me by the end of this chapter..._**

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**The Seeress' Redemption**

An astounded hush fell over the warring citadel of Camelot, each citizen pausing in their respective battles to stare in amazement and trepidation at the figure who had just entered their midst with Gaius, Elyan, and Queen Guinevere. Even the dark creatures they fought hesitated at the sight of one they thought was their mistress. And then, slowly, the sudden quiet gave way to whispered mutterings.

"Is that –"

"No, it can't be, she's inside…"

"Then who –"

"Impossible!"

"Morgana!"

The last came from Sir Gwaine, who hastened to the seeress' side, his posture weary, his normally jovial face drawn. "You shouldn't be here…"

"On the contrary," Morgana answered him coolly, "this is exactly where I should be." And so saying, she ignored the crowd of Camelotians who were viewing her with suspicion and fear. She swept past them and instead drew the attention of all the magical beasts in Morgan's army, speaking directly to them with words that rang with power and authority. "Begone, all of you," she commanded, using her identical appearance with Morgan le Fay to her advantage. "No more battle is to be done here. Return from whence you came, and I will deal with you later."

The creatures all eyed her warily for a long moment before turning as one and retreating to the north. Morgana knew she had only delayed the issue of the army – eventually they would return to cause more havoc – but she had bought them time by dispersing Morgan le Fay's main advantage. Hopefully, by the time any of those creatures returned, Arthur would be back in control of Camelot and Merlin would be Court Sorcerer, and the dark beings would be defeated easily. But for now, a step had been made to reclaiming Camelot – now, only Derowen and Morgan herself remained.

_"Who dares to command my army?" _a chilling voice shrieked from somewhere above; all turned to see Morgan le Fay's seething figure on the parapet. Morgana steeled herself and met Morgan's gaze as calmly as she could manage.

"I dare, Morgan."

Morgan blinked once in surprise before her mouth twisted in a sneer. "Hello, Morgana," she greeted. "How does it feel to know you did this?" She waved an arm over the chaos and destruction in the courtyard.

"I did not do this," Morgana corrected. "_You _did."

"But I am you, or at least, I _was_ you." Morgan smirked. "Now I am my own person, and I have accomplished more than you ever did. I have killed the king!"

Horrified gasps and exclamations met her thunderous proclamation. Those who had not known of Arthur's demise – which is to say, all of them, except Morgana, Gwen, Gaius, and Elyan – turned to those four who did, hoping for denial. When none was forthcoming, they mourned.

"You may have killed Arthur," Morgana agreed, "but I'm sure you know, Morgan, that in the right circumstances, even death can be reversed?"

"It would require a powerful life to return the Once and Future King from a magical death," Morgan scoffed.

"How about the life of Emrys?"

Morgan's eyes widened for a split second before she burst out laughing. "So, our dear warlock is trading his life for his king's, is he? He's an even greater fool than I thought," she said derisively. "I can easily deal with Arthur again – and this time, there will be no warlock to protect him – nor a sorceress, either!"

At her words, a sudden gust of wind leapt up around Morgana, whipping her hair around. It stank of dark magic and spirits, and Morgana knew it was Derowen's work. As all manner of fantastical natural elements attacked her host parent, Morgan seemed content to simply watch from her balcony as Derowen dealt with Morgana.

_"Wind __ætstandan," _Morgana ordered, and immediately the gale died down. But then a thousand dead leaves rose from the ground and came together in a horrific monster of decaying vegetation. With another spell, Morgana blasted that apart too. But as she made to step forward, she was caught mid-air by a translucent spirit with features reminiscent of the Dorocha. Its wispy arms wrapped around her nose and mouth, and Morgana found herself struggling to breathe. Strangely, although there was not a hint of water in sight, she felt like she was drowning – Derowen must have conjured a water spirit to hold her.

"Finish her off, Derowen," Morgan called from above. "Let's get this over with."

Morgana's eyes blazed gold as her instinctive magic took over and fought off the suffocating grip of her supernatural captor. Morgana dropped to the ground, sucking in deep gulps of air. Her relief was short-lived, however; a second later, a volley of rocks – hurled by several vicious earth spirits – sailed her way, one after another. Morgana did her best to avoid them, but a painful cry escaped her as one of the stones struck her on her left arm. Gingerly, she clutched her injured limb close to her body, knowing the blow had fractured a bone somewhere.

"Yield, Morgana Pendragon, and your death will be quick," Derowen said persuasively as she appeared in front of the suffering royal.

_"__St__ā__n afeallan," _Morgana cried, her eyes flashing gold as a large block of stone broke off from the very parapet Morgan stood upon and fell towards Derowen. Morgan cursed and jumped away while Derowen wielded the nature spirits and crushed the rock to a shower of tiny pieces.

"Derowen!" Morgan shouted, the command clear in her voice.

Derowen's unnaturally youthful face turned cold and cruel. "So be it, then."

**MERLIN**

Merlin groaned as he returned to consciousness, only to find Arthur shaking him awake.

"Wake up, lazybones," Arthur said. "I need you to get us out of here, because _I _don't know where the hell we are."

Merlin sighed as he cracked open his eyes, immediately realizing where they were. "We're on the other side of the gates of Avalon," he said, looking over the lake.

"You know, _Mer_lin, I kind of figured that one out on my own. Seeing how the lake is identical to the one we just left. Now, if you could be so kind as to tell me where we should be going…"

Merlin shook his head clear of the remaining daze and pointed to his left. "That way." He frowned, considering. "I think."

"You _think_?"

"Look, I'm still a little unsettled, all right? I feel like I'm still partly in Avalon."

Arthur blinked once, his mouth forming a perfect 'O' as a slightly anxious expression came over his face. "I think that's because you are."

Merlin stared at him, uncomprehending. "What are you talking about?"

"Merlin," Arthur said seriously, "don't you remember what your girlfriend said?"

Merlin's cheeks turned pink. "She's not my –"

"Then what would you call her?" Arthur demanded. He seemed ready to press the issue, but then he decided against it. "Fine – the _Lady of the Lake_, then – she said we have twenty-four hours to kill Morgan le Fay, right?"

"Right," Merlin agreed.

"Meaning that until we do, your life is still forfeit – because apparently, the trade you made between your life and mine is already considered 'official', because _I _don't feel like I'm not all here. Meaning, if we _don't _manage to kill Morgan, you go back to Avalon – for good this time." Arthur's face was unusually grave. "You're not out of the woods yet, Merlin."

"I know that."

Arthur gave him a long look before he spoke again. "Then let's get going, Merlin – because I swear, if you die _again_, I will walk into that bloody lake myself to drag your lazy ass back to work."

**MERLIN**

Morgana gasped as a lethally sharp branch of wood shot past her, missing her neck by inches. Derowen was fast proving to be a far more capable opponent than she had initially thought – Morgana was pushing her limit just trying to avoid getting killed by the spirits the mystic ws commanding. The only bonus was that Morgan le Fay appeared to be entertained enough by their deadly duel that she didn't intervene – yet. Morgana had no doubt that if her evil double were to enter the battle, she'd be dead within seconds.

"You can run, but you will only delay the inevitable," Derowen called, sending a wave of unnatural red flames at the sorceress. "Sooner or later, you _will _die."

Morgana chose to ignore the witch's comment in favour of catching her tightly within the grasp of a spell. Derowen's eyes widened and she thrashed about as she fought to escape the death enchantment that was even now working its way to her heart, but Morgana held firm. The Great Dragon had given her but a single task – kill the mystic – and she was not going to fail. Despite the toll it took on her strength, Morgana held firm, repeating the fatal words over and over again.

Derowen, for her part, attempted to cry to the nature spirits for help, but Morgana was well into her spell by now, and the mystic's power was weakening to the point where she could no longer control the spirits.

"No!" a voice yelled.

A second later, Morgana gasped and lurched towards the ground. Hands splayed to prevent her fall, she noticed a sudden weakness in her limbs at the same time she caught sight of the glinting dagger in her chest – the same instant she realized she was going to die here today. And yet, despite the shocking pain that radiated from her wound, despite the darkening blurriness of her vision, despite the growing faintness of her heartbeats, Morgana uttered the final words of her enchantment. Her eyes barely gleamed gold as the last of her magic, the last of her strength, was used to kill Derowen the mystic.

As her eyelids closed, Morgana was dimly aware of her voice – no, _Morgan's _voice – shrieking like a banshee at the fall of her lieutenant. She also registered the cries of her friends – Gwen, Gaius, the knights – and then she realized that they had been calling her name for some time.

"Morgana." This voice was different; it was softer, quiet, full of sorrow and longing, yet also holding understanding. Agonizingly, Morgana opened her eyes to see Arthur's face. True, it was dark and blurry, and looked like it was very far away – but it was his face, nonetheless. And unless she was mistaken, it was his hand holding hers.

"Arthur…" she gasped. "You're…alive…"

"Thanks to Merlin," Arthur agreed; and she could hear the tears he didn't shed in his voice. "Thanks to you," he added more quietly. To someone else, he said in anguish, "Can't you _do _something?"

And then Merlin – sweet, gentle, kind-hearted Merlin, sounding tormented by the very words he had to say – replied, "I'm sorry – I can't – I've always been rubbish at healing magic…Morgana, I'm so sorry!" he burst out feelingly.

Morgana closed her eyes again to conserve what little strength she had left for speaking. "It's…okay…no more…than I deserve…"

"Don't you _ever _say that," Arthur growled. "You deserve so much more than this, Morgana." His voice broke. "So. Much. More."

"Arthur…I'm…so sorry…I wish…"

Arthur closed his eyes tight against the tears that threatened to leak. One spilled onto Morgana's abnormally pale face anyway.

"I forgive you," he said. "Morgana, I forgive you for everything, and…" Here he choked over the lump in his throat. "And I trust you." He remembered telling her – ages ago, it seemed – that he did not forgive her, that she had to earn his trust back. Now she had.

Morgana managed a weak smile. "Good to know," she whispered faintly. Then her hand slipped from his grasp as she became forever still.

A moment of silence descended on the courtyard as everyone bowed their heads, acknowledging the final sacrifice of one who had been a traitor, but who had redeemed herself in front of everyone in the most ultimate way possible.

"Arthur, I'm so sorry."

Arthur shook off Gaius' sympathetic hand as he briefly stroked Morgana's cold cheek. "She killed Derowen?" he inquired.

"She did," Elyan affirmed, wordlessly comforting a sobbing Gwen. "Killed her thoroughly – she burst into nothing at the end of the spell."

Arthur glanced for a second at the blackened scorch mark where Derowen had stood, then looked up at the parapet. Morgan le Fay was nowhere to be seen. Arthur's gaze hardened as he rose.

"Come on, Merlin," he instructed. "We've got a job to do." He had already lost his sister to this battle; he would not allow himself to be responsible for losing his best friend as well.

Morgan le Fay had to be ended, permanently.

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_**A/N: Somebody predicted in an early review that this fic was going to be heartwrenching. I wonder if this counts?**_


	15. The Sorceress' Defeat

**_A/N: Thanks to all my awesome reviewers S_**_tormyskies89, LadyDunla, Anonymous, KlaineDrarryMerthur, **another** Anonymous, CarolinaEirasSa, Epilson Scorpii_**_ (by the way, no, this isn't a Merlin/Morgana fic - as evidenced by Chapter 13, I'm a Merlin/Freya shipper), _**_carinims01, writergirl142, Haley Renee, vballqueen17, ReadingRaven019,_**_ and _**_readernur_**_se!_**

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**The Sorceress' Defeat**

Morgan le Fay seethed in wordless fury in Camelot's throne room, pacing around and around the stone floor in an attempt to think her way through the utterly tangled complication her intended conquest had turned out to be.

It had all seemed so simple, at first, that day when she had first taken shape in Derowen's small house in the woods. She'd had a purpose to accomplish – to kill Arthur Pendragon and bring Camelot to its knees. Derowen had informed her that Arthur Pendragon was, in fact, the Once and Future King destined to bring magic back to Camelot. Of course, if he succeeded, Albion would come into being, and that simply wouldn't do. Morgan le Fay was the embodiment of the very essence of all of Morgana Pendragon's hate, spite, darkness, and ruthlessness – she couldn't just allow Arthur to bring light and joy and prosperity to the entire land.

Also, there was the issue of how she wanted nothing more than to be Queen of Camelot.

Everything had been going splendidly. Arthur had been killed, so fully bound in death by the magical nature of his murder that the amount of power it required to bring him back just didn't bear thinking about. Emrys had fled, and her army had been decimating the ranks of the knights' resistance. Now, however, her army was gone, her trusted ally had fallen, and worst of all, Emrys had returned – with Arthur in tow.

Morgan had to admit she was scared of Emrys – his own power was greater than hers, and his was one of the very few lives that the laws of Avalon would have accepted in exchange for the Once and Future King.

And yet, Emrys was plainly not dead. He still stood beside his king, alive and well. Avalon had not claimed him. _Why? _Morgan wondered. The laws of magic were absolute – not even a warlock as mighty as Emrys could defy them. At most, a bargain could be struck, a deal arranged – but even that would not last, and at the end, the debt would have to be paid.

And with a chill, Morgan realized that there was but one life Avalon would accept in place of Emrys': hers. Of course there were others powerful and valued enough to be traded for Emrys – but Morgan was the only one within reach, and Emrys would never sacrifice an innocent person for his own sake. Morgan was far from innocent, and it was her life they would take.

"Let them come," she whispered to herself. Her eyes became steel and her back straightened as she reminded herself that all was not yet lost. Morgana Pendragon was dead; the final tie that held back Morgan's full power, however slightly, was now gone. Emrys might be powerful beyond all imagining, but he lacked the experience, and sometimes, the will, to actually use the full force of that power. His tender heart and his all-too-noble ideals about _good _and _love _and _mercy _prevented him from unleashing the terrible effects his magic could produce, if he allowed himself to use dark magic – something he would never do, and he was the weaker for it.

And for all his power, Emrys was bound to Arthur. Morgan knew that the two of them would come together – never one without the other. _Two sides of the same coin, indeed. _But it would make her job that much easier. All she had to do was corner Arthur, and even the mighty Emrys would have no choice but to bow to her demands. After all, what good was the Warlock without his King?

A plan began to take shape in Morgan's mind even as she drew deep breaths and pulled in the full breadth of her considerable power. With a little cunning, she would still triumph over king and warlock.

"Let them come," she said again. "It will only be to their final dooms."

**MERLIN**

When Arthur and Merlin reached the throne room, it was dark, barely light enough to see; even the flaming torch Morgan had lit earlier was snuffed out.

"Stay close to me, Merlin," Arthur warned in a low voice. Despite now knowing that Merlin was more than capable of looking after himself, it was hard to ignore a years-old instinct to protect his seemingly defenceless manservant.

Arthur kept his sword at the ready, tip pointed forwards, as they crept through the room, looking for any sign of Morgan.

"Where did she go?" Merlin whispered.

"Shh…" Arthur strained his ears; was it just his imagination, or did he hear something?

A rustle; that was all it was. Just a faint movement of the wind. It was the only warning they had.

A lethal-looking dagger shot out from the shadows at Arthur, and would have killed him a second time had Merlin not had the split second warning. Using only his most instinctive magic, the warlock stopped the knife an inch away from Arthur's face. A half-whispered word later and the blade was speeding back from whence it came. A dull _thunk _sounded as it dug into the wall.

Arthur tensed, wary, as his eyes roved everywhere. He was sorely tempted to ask Merlin to cast a light; but if the darkness went, it made it easier for Morgan to locate them.

Of course, it would also make it easier for _them_ to see _her_…

"Merlin," said Arthur, "we need some light."

"_Leoht_." A glowing, whitish-blue sphere appeared in Merlin's cupped palm; Arthur recognised it at once as the light that had led him out of the caves of Balor all those years ago.

Now that the room was lit, Arthur and Merlin could see the dark shadows that writhed and wriggled on the walls and floor like something alive. The shadows extended black, grasping tendrils towards them, seeking their blood. Merlin warded them off with his light while Arthur slashed his sword at them; Excalibur sang as it sliced through the shadows.

Unbeknownst to them, while they were distracted by the shadows, Morgan le Fay darted out from behind the throne and grabbed Arthur. With a well-placed bit of magic, she forced Arthur to drop his sword. Excalibur clattered to the floor and Morgan had pressed a cold knife to Arthur's throat by the time Merlin turned around.

"Do anything and Arthur dies," Morgan warned him. "Again."

"Not this time, Morgan," Merlin disagreed.

"I _will _kill him. You know I will."

"I know. But then I'll kill you, and offer your life in place of his."

A brief flash of uncertainty crossed Morgan's eyes. "Your own life will be forfeit as well, Emrys. I can see the truth – you're not truly returned to this world yet. If I kill Arthur and you trade my life for his, you will die."

Merlin's response was instant. "So be it."

Arthur was not pleased. "Merlin, you bloody idiot! What the hell are you doing?"

"For once in your life, Arthur, just shut up," Merlin snapped. Arthur was so surprised at the harsh tone in his voice that he fell silent.

Morgan looked from Merlin to Arthur, her gaze calculating. "So be it," she agreed. She prepared to draw the knife across Arthur's throat, but found she could not move her arm. "What –" She glanced at Merlin and realised at once what was going on. "Release me," she demanded coldly.

"Drop the knife, Morgan," Merlin said. "Let's duel, you and me, and settle this once and for all."

Morgan tried to hide her fear. "Why on earth would I ever agree to that?"

"Because I have an offer you can't refuse."

"And what's that?"

"No spells."

Morgan stared at him. "You can't be serious."

"Oh, I am. You're free to throw anything you like at me, but I won't use a single spell."

"_Mer_lin!" Arthur exclaimed, equally horrified and amazed at the same time.

Morgan's eyes glittered with anticipation, but she remained cautious. "Why should I believe you?"

"_Min giedd is __tríewþ eac bindan_," Merlin declared. A magical wind sprang up from nowhere and breezed about the room, affirming his promise. "I have sworn in the words of the Old Religion that I will not use any spells. Come fight me, Morgan le Fay, if you dare."

"Let us fight, then." Morgan dropped her knife, released Arthur, and turned to face Merlin. "_Ættryne brond, gefyllan Emrys!" _

A blazing fireball shot towards Merlin's chest. Arthur cried, "Merlin!" – but he needn't have worried; the fire dissipated into thin air before it could reach the warlock.

Morgan's eyes blazed with fury and suppressed fear. "You tricked me!" she cried.

"I promised not to use any _spells_," Merlin reminded her. "But I don't _need _spells." His eyes flashed gold for the briefest instant, and Morgan had to defend herself against an animated suit of armor. "I am the greatest warlock who has ever, or will ever, live." There was a screech as Morgan smashed the armor to bits. "I could move things with my mind before I could talk." Another glint of gold in Merlin's eyes preceded a close call with a stone column for Morgan. "I have never needed any incantations to make my magic work." The windows shattered and jagged-edged pieces of glass flew towards Morgan. "I am Emrys."

At Merlin's last words, the whole throne room shook with raw power. Morgan shrieked inarticulately with rage as she swept aside all the glass fragments with a single word. "_Die, _Emrys!" she screamed. Focusing all her magic at one spot, she cried, "_Forðferan_!"

The spell reached Merlin, but instead of killing him, it cast an eerie golden glow around his form, as if he were being shielded from it. Morgan's eyes widened with disbelief.

"Impossible…" she breathed.

"Did you forget, Morgan?" Merlin asked. "If you want me dead, you have to work for it. You have to kill me physically; death spells won't work on me like that, because I'm not truly alive yet."

Morgan's eyes blazed. "But _he _is!" Before Merlin could react, she spun to Arthur and shouted, "_Forðferan_!"

What followed was an event so strange it was never spoken of again, never disclosed to anyone who wasn't in the throne room that day. As Morgan's spell touched Arthur and began to kill him, it was again deflected. Arthur glowed much as Merlin had, but with blue light, as two very different forces enveloped him – one fighting to kill him, the other claiming life for him.

And then the Lady of the Lake appeared in the room, rising out of a puddle of water that suddenly appeared from nowhere.

"You!" Morgan exclaimed. "You're not allowed to interfere!"

"In this case, I am," Freya answered her coolly. "I am the Lady of the Lake, the Guardian of Avalon, and I declare that Arthur Pendragon shall not die this day. His life has been insured by the life of another."

"You can't twist the rules like that!" Morgan all but screeched. "Emrys may be powerful, but he only has _one _life! I have killed Arthur twice!"

"And twice, his life has been saved by another freely offered," Freya informed her. "The first sacrifice was Merlin. The second was Morgana Pendragon."

"You can't do that! You can't just _take _the death of anyone who died before as payment for a debt! There are rules!"

"Morgana is Arthur's sister by blood. She died on the same day, and at the same hand that caused Arthur's death. _And_ she is powerful enough in her own right that the balance is settled by her sacrifice," Freya said. "The minute she entered Avalon, she added her life to the magical scales as insurance, in the event that either Arthur or Merlin were killed again."

"It's over, Morgan," Merlin added.

Morgan hissed at him, looking quite deranged. "It isn't over until I _say _it's over. _Forslean him, dreinen heolfor, geendian feorh! Forslean, dreinen, geendian –_"

The enchantment never took. Merlin killed her before she could complete it. Without a single word, he struck her down where she stood. Morgan le Fay burst into nothing, her dying scream echoing off the walls.

"It is done," Freya proclaimed, reaching out one white hand to collect the black spark of Morgan's life. "The debt is paid. Merlin, you're free." This last was said with a small smile on her lips and tenderness in her eyes before she vanished.

Merlin sank to the ground and buried his head in his hands, exhausted and drained. He was also horrified at a sudden realisation – Morgan le Fay had initially been nothing more than a part of Morgana, but in the process of bringing her to form, Derowen had given her the full life of a real person. It had to have happened that way, otherwise Morgan's life would never have been accepted in place of his own. Merlin grieved for the innocent soul who had been sacrificed to bring such an evil menace to life.

Arthur cautiously crept over to Merlin and placed a surprisingly gentle hand on his shoulder.

"You all right?"

Merlin nodded wordlessly.

"Why didn't you do that earlier?"

Merlin sighed. "It's not so easy to kill someone as powerful as Morgan le Fay. I had to wait for her to weaken herself before I could kill her. Had she been at full strength, she would have fought me, and _I_ could have been the one who died."

Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment. Then he punched him.

"OW!" Merlin yelped, clutching his bruised arm. "What was that for, you _prat_?"

"That," Arthur informed him, "was for being rude to your king. Telling me to _shut up_ – honestly, _Mer_lin…"

Merlin sulked as he rubbed his arm. "I needed you to keep your fat mouth shut long enough for me to goad Morgan into fighting me. If she'd kept focusing on you, I'd never have won."

Arthur opened his mouth to protest, found that he didn't have anything to say, and closed it again. "Point taken," he conceded. "But still…you couldn't have clued me in?"

"You tell _me _to shut up often enough," Merlin pointed out.

"That's different," Arthur said dismissively. "I'm a royal. And you, in case you've forgotten, are my servant. I've a right to boss you around."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Prat."

"Idiot."


	16. The Memory of Comrades

**_A/N: Hullo all! Many thanks to R_**_eadingRaven019, Haley Renee, carinims01, LadyDunla, RocknVaughn, Stormyskies89, StrangelyPenned, readernurse, Minch,_**_ and_**_ MilleniumHeart794_**_ for reviewing - especially _**_readernurse_**_ and _**_Minch_**_ for reviewing several chapters at once and _**_RocknVaughn_**_ for a beautifully long review._  
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**_Sadly, we are now coming to the end of this epic tale...but stick around a while longer, 'cause we're not quite through yet..._**

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**The Memory of Comrades**

The first thing Queen Guinevere did upon waking that morning was to look out her window to see what the weather was like. To her relief, the skies were clear as crystal, with only a gentle breeze blowing. The sun was not quite up yet, but it was plain that when it was, it would illuminate the city with golden light and not remain hidden behind a cloak of dark grey clouds.

Unfortunately, from her window, Gwen could also see remnants of Morgan le Fay's conquest of Camelot – rubble that had not yet been cleared, ruins that were not yet rebuilt. A wave of sadness crashed over the queen, threatening her eyes with tears.

There was a soft knock on the door, and Gwen pulled herself together. "Enter."

A pretty young maid with honey-blonde hair and fair skin came in. Ashlynn had been one of Gwen's best friends when the latter was still a servant herself, and that had not changed after Gwen's ascension to Queen. She had specifically requested Ashlynn to be her personal maidservant, and the two of them shared a friendship not unlike the one Gwen had shared with Morgana before everything went wrong.

"Up already, Your Majesty?" Ashlynn said, as she drew the curtains closed.

"Ashlynn, you know there's no need to call me that."

"Humour me. I'm still enjoying my new promotion." Ashlynn went to the cupboard and pulled the doors open. "What would you like to wear today?"

"I'll dress myself today," Gwen said. "You can have the day off."

"Gwen, I know you're still not used to being Queen, but eventually you'll have to –"

"Ashlynn." There was a pleading note to Gwen's voice. "Please – just for today, let me do things myself."

Ashlynn caught the hidden message in her queen's eyes, and obediently curtseyed and went out. Gwen turned to her dressing table with a sigh. Sitting down, she began to brush her hair.

As she went through her morning routine, she strove to keep the tears at bay – for Arthur's sake, she had to be strong. This day would be hard enough without her breaking down into tears.

Nevertheless, as she reached around her neck to fasten the clasp on her necklace, her hands trembled and her breath came in quick gasps.

Two gentle hands landed on her shoulders from behind; Gwen didn't need to turn around to know that it was Arthur.

"It's all right, Gwen," he said. "Let it out."

Gwen's face scrunched up as she lost the battle against her emotions and sobbed into Arthur's shirt. Arthur held her close to him, offering her comfort despite his own grief.

**MERLIN**

Merlin sat on his bed, staring at nothing with a forlorn expression on his face. He had yet to change out of his nightclothes.

Everything from the last couple of weeks ran through his mind, repeating over and over in his head until he was certain he would never be able to forget even the tiniest detail of what had happened. So much had changed in such a short time. His magic and his identity as Emrys had been discovered and revealed to everyone; Camelot itself had been half destroyed and would take time to be rebuilt; and not to mention, he'd gone to Avalon to save Arthur, seen Lancelot and Freya, then returned to life in the real world – making him the only mortal ever to voluntarily enter Avalon and come back alive. In fact, he was starting to wonder if he was even actually completely mortal.

But all that aside, the most difficult thing to accept was Morgana's role in this entire fiasco. After years of trying to bring Camelot and Arthur to ruin, she had finally reverted to the kind and caring soul she had been before Morgause's interference. She had come so far from her path of evil and hate – she had repented and been forgiven, and played a key role in bringing Arthur back from the dead – and then, after all that, she had died saving Camelot. It didn't seem fair.

_Correction, _Merlin thought to himself, _it _isn't _fair._

"Merlin?" Gaius pushed open the door. "Breakfast is ready. Why aren't you dressed?"

"I'm…thinking."

Gaius looked sympathetic. "Is it Morgana?"

Merlin exhaled. "She didn't deserve it, Gaius. After everything she'd been through, she didn't deserve to die."

Gaius nodded solemnly as he sat next to his ward on the bed. "No, she didn't," he agreed. "But neither did anyone else. Lancelot, Freya, Balinor – none of them deserved it. It was just the way the dice fell."

"It isn't fair," Merlin said sadly.

"No, it isn't. But it's beyond our power. All we can do is remember them; remember what they did in their life, honour their memory, and move on. One day, I'm sure, we will see them all again."

**MERLIN**

The trumpets played a mournful tune to the drums' solemn beat as the royal procession – including the King, Queen, and the rest of the Round Table – came to a halt just in front of the pyre. With great gentleness and obvious grief in his movements, Arthur lowered Morgana's still body onto the pyre.

Morgana had been prepared for the funeral rites by only the most trusted maidservants in the citadel – handpicked by Queen Guinevere herself. The newly redeemed Pendragon was beautiful even in death – some would argue that she was even prettier this way than she had been as an evil sorceress. Two sections of her black hair had been pinned back, but the rest of her lustrous curls fell free, spilling over her back and shoulders. Her lovely face was made up as it had been when she was a Lady of Camelot, attending banquets with the King and Prince – and she was clothed in her favourite dark blue dress and sheer purple wraparound.

As stoically as he could manage, Arthur turned to the watching crowd. He did not begin his address with the pomp and formality he usually imbued his speeches with; today was not a time for officiousness. Instead, he started simply, "We have suffered greatly over the course of the last few weeks. Morgan le Fay's attack on Camelot cost us much of what we hold dear. Loved ones, family homes, prized belongings – we've all lost something. Our fair city, too, lies half in ruins; it will take many months before all is restored.

"I have suffered just as much as any of you. I may not have lived under Morgan's rule as some of you did, but I have lost someone very important to me. As all of you know, the Lady Morgana betrayed us and sought to destroy us, but she reformed and redeemed herself in the most ultimate way possible. You all witnessed her final battle against Derowen the mystic and her last sacrifice." Here Arthur had to fight to stay in control of his voice. "No matter what she did, Morgana was my sister, and I loved her with all my heart. And I am proud to call her my kin, because in the end, she did what was right. Morgana died saving Camelot, and that is what she will be remembered for."

Arthur paused for a while before continuing, "We are here today to put her to rest. But although it is Morgana we send off, it is not just her we mourn. We grieve for each and every one we lost in the battle for Camelot, and we honour their sacrifice. This day is dedicated to their memory, for us to remember them."

As he closed his address, four servants bearing lighted torches made their way to the group. The four torches were passed to Arthur, Gwen, Merlin, and Gaius; as the four people closest to Morgana, they were given the right to light her pyre.

One by one, the four of them approached the pyre. Solemnly, Arthur cast the first torch; the dry twigs caught fire immediately. Then Gwen added her torch, followed by Gaius. Finally, Merlin came forward. As he threw his torch in, he whispered, "_Forbaerne_," – and the flames leapt high, licking over the whole pyre.

They stood there, watching the fire consume Morgana's body, for what seemed like hours. Eventually, the crowd dispersed; little by little, they all left, until it was only Arthur, Gwen, Merlin, and Gaius in the courtyard.

Eventually, as the first drops of rain fell, they too retreated back into the castle.

**MERLIN**

When the door opened, Merlin expected it to be Gaius, back from his evening rounds. To his surprise, it wasn't the physician who came in, but Arthur.

"Arthur!" Merlin exclaimed, jumping up and trying to hide the fact that he'd been crying (quite freely, too). However, his red-rimmed eyes and thick voice were dead giveaways.

"Tears are nothing to be ashamed of, Merlin," Arthur said as he took a seat beside his manservant. To be honest, Arthur looked as though he'd been crying too – yet he somehow still looked more macho than Merlin did, and probably always would.

"Weren't you the one who told me that no man is worth my tears?" Merlin said. Arthur winced.

"Some men are." Arthur hesitated. "Merlin," he said quietly, "I'm sorry."

Merlin looked up in surprise. "For what?"

"For ever saying that to you. Even if he wasn't your father, I had no right to say that – to anyone, really. I know better now."

"Arthur, it's okay," Merlin assured him. "I know what you were really trying to tell me."

Arthur feigned innocence. "What do you mean? I wasn't saying anything else."

Merlin smiled and shook his head. "You know, after all this, you're still a prat." He turned serious again. "But I know you. You didn't want me to cry over you if you died fighting the dragon."

"Wonders will never cease. I thought you'd be too thick to get the message. Come to think of it, you still are." Arthur sighed. "Still, I should have told you another way."

"It's all right, Arthur – I know you did it that way because you weren't quite ready to be that open about our friendship."

"I'm glad to know you're not quite as stupid as you look."

"But you are now."

"Obviously, _Mer_lin. Otherwise I wouldn't be here."

Merlin frowned. "What do you mean?" he questioned.

Arthur didn't answer immediately. He seemed to be trying to figure out how to word his reply, so Merlin didn't push him.

"I know how hard it is to lose someone you love," Arthur finally spoke. "I've been through it before, with my father – but that was months ago, and as much as I hate to admit it, I wasn't that close to him. But with Morgana…" He shrugged sadly. "I grew up with her, Merlin. She was my sister long before I found out we were related by blood. When she betrayed us, I couldn't stand to think about it. And when she repented, I didn't dare let myself hope, but…I _did _hope, Merlin. And a big part of me was happy that she was on our side again – that we got her back. And then she died, and…" He inhaled shakily; Merlin waited patiently, his face curious.

"The point is," Arthur continued, "I was closer to Morgana than to my father, and her death hit me harder. So I now understand grief better."

Merlin still looked confused. Arthur puffed in exasperation. Typical. This was _Merlin _he was talking to – of _course _he needed things spelled out for him in black and white. Although, to be fair, he _was _being rather cryptic.

"What I'm trying to say here, Merlin, is that I understand how you must have felt when you lost your father."

Merlin blinked as the painful memory of that day assaulted him. But Arthur wasn't done.

"And while I can't pretend to know what you felt when Freya died – hell, I don't understand how you could forgive me for _killing_ her – I have an idea of what you went through when you lost her or anyone else you loved. But although I had you to help me through my grief, you didn't have anyone. You couldn't even tell me what happened; you had to handle it alone – and for that, I'm sorry." In a softer tone, Arthur added, "I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you like you were for me."

Merlin stared at Arthur, mouth agape. "Who are you and what have you done with Arthur Pendragon?"

Arthur snorted. "Yes, well – don't get too used to this, Merlin; I don't think it's going to happen very often in the foreseeable future." He stood up. "The restoration of Camelot begins tomorrow, so I need you to wake me up bright and early."

Merlin nodded. "Yes, Sire."

"And Merlin? If you're late, I _will _put you in the stocks."

"Come now – Camelot's Court Sorcerer in the stocks? That won't go down very well," Merlin said impudently. Arthur cuffed him around the head.

"You're not Court Sorcerer yet, idiot. We don't have time for it right now. You'll be promoted when Camelot is recovered enough – until then, I have a lot of kingly business to see to, and I certainly won't have time to train a new manservant – so until I do, you'll just have to do. Understood?"

"Yes, Sire," Merlin said again, smiling. "Arthur?" he added as the latter opened the door to go out. "Thanks."

Arthur nodded with a smile of his own and left.

* * *

_**A/N: This chapter had a lot of emotional depth which I hope I wrote convincingly. Much as I love the show, they do gloss over a fair bit when portraying the emotional impact of events which have occurred, and I didn't want to make the same mistake.**_

_**We have one more chapter to go, so stay tuned!  
**_


	17. The Dawn of Albion

**_A/N: A huge thank-you to my reviewers _**_merlinismylife, Ash9, lordstarlight, LadyDunla, ReadingRaven019, Epsilon Scorpii, Stormyskies89, CarolinaEirasSa, rmatri540, carinims01, CeaseFireOne, StrangelyPenned,_**_ and _**_Laughy-Taffy the Grape_**_, as well as to everyone else who ever reviewed or who will ever review this story. Thank you also to everyone who has or will put this story (or me) on favorites or alerts. I've had a great time on this journey with you, and I hope you did too._**

**_We end on quite grand note, so I hope it makes up for this fic having to end :)  
_**

* * *

**The Dawn of Albion**

The day dawned bright and sunny, and a cool breeze ruffled through the newly-rebuilt city. The whole of Camelot had a tranquil and serene air about it as its citizens bustled about their morning duties.

Into this peaceful scene burst a haggard-looking warlock who appeared to be running for his very life from a highly annoyed king.

"No!" Merlin shouted as he raced across the courtyard. "I'm not wearing it; you can't make me!"

"_Mer_lin!" Arthur called in exasperation, waving a hat around. To anyone else, it was just a hat – albeit an outrageously ostentatious one – but to Merlin, it was an instrument of torture. It was deeply purple and pointy and covered with little golden stars – and Arthur expected Merlin to _wear _it. To the royal ceremony. Where he would be appointed Court Sorcerer. For the whole kingdom to see.

"I am _not _wearing that ridiculous thing!" Merlin exclaimed. "It's _horrible_!"

"It's expected!" Arthur shot back, chasing after him. "You'll need an official hat as Court Sorcerer."

"NO!" Merlin all but shrieked as he dashed to the training grounds and hid behind Percival's bulky form. "Save me," he begged the big knight, who chuckled heartily.

"Percival, would you be so kind as to forcibly restrain Merlin for me, please?" Arthur asked. "I need to see how well this fits him; the royal hatter needs the measurements back by noon if the hat's to be ready for the ceremony tomorrow."

"Arthur, if you _dare _make me wear that…that abomination – I will turn you into a toad," Merlin threatened.

Arthur sighed. "Honestly, Merlin, _must _you be so dramatic? It's not like you'll have to wear it _all _the time – only at official ceremonies…"

"Oh, _official _ceremonies, is it?" Merlin said, a little wild around the eyes. "Arthur, I am never, _ever_, going to wear that thing, no matter _what _you say or do."

"But it would make you look _so _distinguished…"

"Arthur!"

Arthur chuckled. "Fine." He tossed the hat unceremoniously to the ground. "I told Gwaine it wouldn't work, anyway…"

"_Gwaine _put you up to this?" Merlin exclaimed in disbelief. "Why would he do that?"

"Well, I was wondering what your official costume should be – obviously you can't wear those old things anymore…"

"I like my clothes," Merlin defended.

"…and Gwaine suggested a hat as part of your outfit. Then Leon told him about the time I made you wear the feathered servants' hat to the banquet with Lord Bayard, and how you were never, ever going to wear such a thing again…"

"With good reason!"

"…and Gwaine almost died laughing. He said he wanted to see you in a ridiculous hat at least once, and offered me ten gold pieces if I could get you to wear this one to the ceremony," Arthur finished. Merlin stared at him, speechless.

"Where's Gwaine?" he asked finally. "I'm gonna kill him."

**MERLIN**

When Merlin entered Arthur's chambers the next morning (without knocking, of course), he was surprised to find Arthur already dressed and writing at his desk.

"You're up," Merlin observed, in some confusion.

On any other day Arthur might have rolled his eyes and made some sarcastic comment to stress his point about how he wasn't totally helpless – but today was a different matter entirely.

"What are you doing here, Merlin?"

Merlin blinked in puzzlement. "I _am _your manservant," he pointed out. He started to make Arthur's bed.

"By this afternoon, you won't be." Arthur set his quill down. "I know I said I didn't have time to train a new manservant yet, but that was two months ago, and the ceremony is today. You don't have to do this anymore, Merlin." He walked over to take his pillow from Merlin's hands, but Merlin kept a firm hold on it.

"No, really, I don't mind."

"You may not, but _I _do." Arthur tugged harder at the pillow, but Merlin still wouldn't let go. "You should be getting ready for the ceremony."

"I have plenty of time," Merlin insisted stubbornly.

"_Mer_lin," Arthur said exasperatedly, "let go of the pillow." He finally succeeded in prying the pillow away from Merlin's grasp.

Merlin looked decidedly mournful. "It's my last day as your manservant, Arthur. Can't you just let me fulfil my duties?"

"Since when have you been so keen to do chores for me?" Arthur wondered.

Merlin awkwardly shuffled his feet and mumbled, "Since I'm never going to do them again after today."

Understanding dawned on Arthur; Merlin was nervous, not so much about the change that was coming, but about how it would affect his relationship with Arthur.

"Merlin, you _do _know exactly what it is you're being promoted to, don't you?"

"Yeah."

"Then you should also know that I won't need you any less – in all honesty, I'll probably need you more. Our friendship won't change just because you'll no longer be my manservant – in fact, it'll be on better footing, because we'll finally be equals."

Merlin looked thoughtful for all of a second before a sly expression crossed his face. "Does that mean you can't throw things at me anymore?" he asked cheekily.

In response, Arthur shoved the pillow in his face. "No, Merlin. That is, and always will be, my right as your friend."

**MERLIN**

"All right, Merlin?" Queen Guinevere asked gently as she came to stand beside Merlin on the balcony where, in a few short hours, he would be introduced to the people of Camelot as their Court Sorcerer.

"Yes," Merlin assured her. "I just can't believe it's finally happening, you know? All these years, I've been waiting for this…waiting for Arthur to realise just how much I've done for him – and now the moment's here and I can barely believe it."

Gwen smiled. "_I_ still can't believe you were hiding magic the whole time I knew you," she said. "Never in a million years would I have thought you were a sorcerer, let alone Emrys."

Merlin laughed at that; then his thoughts and expression took a more pensive turn. "It's just a pity…" He trailed off, sighing.

"What?" Gwen inquired.

"That Morgana couldn't see this," Merlin finished. His eyes turned sad. Gwen sighed and nodded.

"You knew before any of us did, didn't you? That she had magic?"

"Yes. Gaius and I tried to keep her from discovering that she was a Seer, that her dreams were prophecies – we were afraid of what Uther might do if he found out. We were trying to protect her."

"I don't blame you," Gwen said. "The number of times she woke up screaming because of her dreams…she would have been even more scared if she knew she had magic."

"She did eventually find out," Merlin said. "And she _was _scared, Gwen – she was absolutely terrified. I wanted to tell her about my powers, so she could see that it wasn't a bad thing – but Gaius warned me not to…and I guess I was a little afraid of what she would do, too. Now that I look back on it, maybe if I'd told her, she never would have –"

"Merlin, you can't blame yourself for what she did," Gwen interjected. "It was her choice. What matters is that she came around eventually. At the very end of it all, she was _our _Morgana."

"She always was a good person at heart," Merlin agreed. "She was so strong...she always stood up to Uther, always helped those who couldn't help themselves…and when she accepted her magic, she was scared, but she had hope for a better future, a better Camelot, where magic was allowed once more, and seen as a force for good." He shook his head with a small, wistful smile. "It's just sad she couldn't see it happening."

"I'm sure she knows, Merlin," Gwen said sagely. "She knew what you were working towards, what your destiny was – she died knowing Albion would come to be."

**MERLIN**

As the day drew closer and closer to the time of the ceremony, Merlin grew increasingly anxious. He took to pacing around Gaius' quarters, nervously chewing on his lips. The old physician sighed as Merlin's incessant footsteps distracted him, once again, from the page he was reading.

"Merlin, what _is _the matter with you?" he inquired. "In a few hours, everything you've been working for will come to fruition. I can't imagine that you have anything to be worried about."

"I'm not worried…I just…I'm nervous," Merlin said. "Everything's all happening at once – what if something goes wrong?" It was an irrational fear, he knew – but after so long living in dread of his magic being discovered, to be mere hours away from acknowledging it in front of the whole of Camelot…it was surreal.

"Normally I'd see your point, but in this case I think you're being a touch paranoid, Merlin," Gaius told him. "There is no reason to think that anything will go wrong."

"It feels like a dream, Gaius," Merlin confided. "I keep expecting to wake up and find that the past few months never happened, that Morgana's still evil and Arthur still doesn't know who I am."

Gaius rose from his chair and walked over to Merlin to place a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I understand the feeling, Merlin. But I assure you, it is no dream. These past few months have been a journey for all of us, but this is something that has been in the making since before you were even born. Your time has finally come." As he hugged his ward, he added, "I'm proud of you, my boy."

**MERLIN**

Merlin stood outside the double doors leading to the throne room, still anxious, but feeling much calmer than he'd been in the afternoon. He tried his best to look stately in anticipation of his grand entrance, but he kept fidgeting – largely because he felt strange in his new clothes.

Gone were his blue shirt, his brown coat, and his red neckerchief – he was now clad in a midnight blue doublet and black trousers. On his feet were tailored boots of black leather, and behind him trailed the red cape traditional of Camelot. Merlin had thought the cape clashed horrendously with the blue of his outfit, and had said as much to Arthur – but Arthur had pointed out that it wasn't any worse than what he usually wore. And once he'd actually stopped protesting and dressed in the thing, Merlin had to admit the contrast wasn't actually that bad. (Of course, Arthur said he still looked as ridiculous as ever, even in such finery – but the fond note hidden in his voice as he'd said it belied his true opinion.)

"Well," chuckled a familiar voice, "don't you look dashing."

Merlin spun and almost tripped over his cape before Gwaine caught him.

"I must say, though, the new clothes haven't done much for your balance. You're still just as clumsy as ever." Like Merlin, Gwaine was dressed for ceremony, looking every inch a Knight of Camelot in his newly polished chainmail and a freshly laundered cape of his own.

"You would know, wouldn't you?" Merlin teased as he regained his equilibrium. Gwaine scrutinized him critically.

"I still think you could have done with that hat," the knight said with a pert grin. Merlin glared at him and Gwaine held up his hands placatingly. "I'm joking."

"Hilarious." Merlin rolled his eyes. "What are you doing out here, anyway? You should be inside."

Gwaine shrugged. "I'm running a little late – I was at the tavern, acquainting myself with a _very _attractive barmaid…you know how it goes." He winked. Merlin couldn't help laughing. Then Gwaine grew a bit more serious. "And I wanted to see my best friend before the most important moment of his life."

Merlin smiled widely. "You didn't have to do that."

"Oh, I know. But Elyan told me you've been looking worried all day."

"I'm not worried…anymore."

"Good." Gwaine clapped him on the back. "Don't be, Merlin. You deserve this." He grinned roguishly. "I'd better go in before the royal princess gets irritated. See you inside, Merlin." He slipped into the room, leaving Merlin alone outside.

A few minutes later, the trumpets sounded from inside and the doors were pulled wide open. Merlin took a deep breath and swept in, willing himself not to trip as he made the long walk up to where Arthur and Guinevere were standing as King and Queen. Upon reaching them, he went down on one knee, and Arthur began to speak.

"People of Camelot," the king began, "today marks the beginning of a new age. For years, magic has been banned from the kingdom, on pain of death. But as we have seen in the past few months, magic is not evil. It was once a force for good that was welcome in Camelot, and so it shall be again. In accordance with that, I hereby officially declare the ban on magic lifted."

A storm of cheering and applause met his words – between Merlin's spectacular defeat of Morgan le Fay, and his magic significantly speeding up Camelot's recovery process, and Arthur's absolute faith in him, most of Camelot's citizens had come to accept magic as a natural part of life. Still kneeling, Merlin smiled. The ban had been all but non-existent since that day in the forest, but with all the rebuilding and reorganisation that had had to be done after reclaiming Camelot, it had not been officially repealed until today.

"And to celebrate this momentous occasion," Arthur continued, "it gives me great pleasure to appoint a new post of the royal court. Today, a position of great importance is to be granted to one who has served Camelot faithfully, above and beyond the call of duty, and who is one of the best men I have had the pleasure of knowing." Here Arthur accepted his ceremonial sword from Geoffrey of Monmouth and turned to look at Merlin. "Do you swear to uphold the laws of Camelot, with all your might and all your will, with every fibre of your being and every breath of your body?"

"I so swear," Merlin replied.

"Do you swear to remain loyal to your king and fellow citizens, to pledge unwavering fealty to your sovereign, from now until the end of your days?"

"I so swear."

"Do you swear to use your magic only for what is good and pure, to defend Camelot from the evils which plague it, and to never cross into the path of darkness?"

"I so swear."

"Then by the power vested in me as Sovereign, I declare thee, Merlin Emrys…" Arthur gently laid the flat of the blade against each of Merlin's shoulders before announcing, "…Court Sorcerer of Camelot and First Advisor to the King."

As Merlin rose, a thunderous cacophony of cheers and claps, even greater than before, ushered him into his new role. Arthur's eyes were alight with rare pride in his friend, and Guinevere was smiling warmly as she joined the applause. Gwaine, Leon, Elyan, and Percival were all grinning broadly, and Gaius looked as though he might burst with pride for the man who had become like a son to him.

However, it wasn't over yet. With Gwen at his side, Arthur led Merlin over to the balcony, so that the citizens congregated in the city square below could also welcome their new Court Sorcerer. As Merlin waved to them, Kilgharrah touched his mind.

_"Well done, young warlock."_

And then, to his surprise, another draconic voice chimed in.

_"From this day forth I swear fealty to you as my Dragonlord, Emrys, for now that you have come into your destiny I am yours to command."_

_"Aithusa?" _Merlin questioned silently.

The only answer he received were the distant roars of two dragons, their voices full of joy at the fulfilment of destiny and the dawn of Albion.


End file.
